Endless Leaf-Bare
by Gustpetal
Summary: A false daughter. A stolen kit. One mysterious pact. A dark history. The secrets of four clans are about to spill over with the arrival of a nomadic clan who demands their ancient home back. Tensions rise as leaf-bare grows ever longer, but the greatest secret of all will be discovered, and for five cats, it will mean the destruction of their clans. Their demons will rise.
1. Allegiances and Prologue

**Allegiances**

**IslandClan**

**Leader: **Pouncestar: black she-cat

**Deputy: **Fishclaw: black-blue tom

**Medicine Cat:** Goldenfur: golden she-cat

**Medicine Cat Apprentice:** Watercloud: grayish-blue tom

**Warriors:**

Minnowtail: gray tom

**Apprentice: **Pinepaw

Silverfall: gray she-cat

Sandnose: light gray tom

**Apprentice: **Wingpaw

Scaleleg: black tom

Shellfur: fluffy white she-cat with black paws and ears

**Apprentice: **Willowpaw

Voleear: brown tom

**Apprentice: **Marigoldpaw

Owlfeather: fluffy brown and white tom

**Apprentice: **Troutpaw

Rosefur: ginger she-cat

Hawkbeak: black and white tom

Waspeye: cream she-cat with dark tabby markings

**Apprentices:**

Willowpaw: gray she-cat (14 moons)

Wingpaw: gray tom (14 moons)

Pinepaw: grayish-blue tom (9 moons)

Troutpaw: light gray tom with black forepaws (7 waffles)

Marigoldpaw: fluffy white she-cat (7 moons)

**Queens:**

Rosefur (Lightkit, Flarekit and Flowerkit, fathered by Owlfeather)

Silverfall (Moonkit, adopted)

Pouncestar (Fernkit and Wavekit, fathered by Fishclaw)

**Kits:**

Lightkit: cream colored she-cat with brown forepaws (4 moons)

Flowerkit: light brown she-cat (4 moons)

Flarekit: ginger tom (4 moons)

Moonkit: gray she-cat with white patch of fur on forehead (3 moons)

Fernkit: black tom (2 moons)

Wavekit: blackish-blue she-cat (2 moons)

**Elders:**

Berryeyes: cream-colored tom

Mousefoot: brown she-cat

**MarshClan**

**Leader: **Lilystar: dark tabby she-cat with white paws and underbelly

**Deputy: **Pinegaze: dappled gray tom

**Medicine Cat: **Poolflight: grayish-blue tom

**Warriors:**

Snakefur: dark brown tom

**Apprentice: **Thornpaw

Darkpelt: black she-cat

Twistedclaw: light brown tom with cream paws

Toad-yowl: dark gray tom with light tabby markings

Hoppingtail: light gray she-cat

**Apprentice: **Beechpaw

Bravescreech: brown she-cat

Bramblenose: brown tom with black paws and ears

**Apprentice: **Sleekpaw

Dovestorm: misty gray she-cat

Cedarleg: brown tom with darker brown paws

**Apprentice: **Spottedpaw

Duskwhisker: dark gray she-cat

Streamears: light golden tom

**Apprentices:**

Beechpaw: light brown tom (15 moons)

Thornpaw: dark gray tom with silvery-gray ears and muzzle (13 moons)

Sleekpaw: dappled black and gray tom (11 moons)

Ivypaw: tortoiseshell she-cat (11 moons)

**Queens:**

Darkpelt (Muddykit and Smokekit, fathered by Twistedclaw)

Bravescreech (Swampkit, Wolfkit, and Murkykit, fathered by Bramblenose)

**Kit:**

Muddykit: dark brown she-cat (4 moons)

Smokekit: mottled black and gray (4 moons)

Wolfkit_:_ silvery-gray she-cat (3 moons)

Swampkit: dark brown tabby tom (3 moons)

Murkykit: brown she-cat with black ear tips (3 moons)

**Elders:**

Warmeyes: soft brown she-cat

**ForestClan**

**Leader: **Maplestar: tortoiseshell tom with black forelegs

**Deputy: **Acorneye: light brown she-cat with dark brown paws and ears

**Medicine Cat: **Sparkleaf: black she-cat

**Warriors:**

Bushpelt: long-haired black tom with white ear tips and underbelly

**Apprentice: **Applepaw

Thistlefang: fluffy gray tom with white ear tips

Sageflower: cream colored she cat with gray tabby markings

**Apprentice: **Birchpaw

Mistbreeze: misty gray she-cat

Boulderfrost: light brown tom

Mallowleap: ginger tabby she-cat

Skyleaf: light gray she-cat with darker gray stripes

Goosecloud: fluffy, longhaired white tom with black muzzle

Ashear: tortoiseshell she-cat

**Apprentice: **Mosspaw

Ripplefall: light brown tom with dark tabby markings

**Apprentices:**

Applepaw: ginger tom (12 moons)

Birchpaw: white she-cat (12 moons)

Mosspaw: dark tabby she-cat (8 moons)

**Queens:**

Mallowleap (Hazelkit, Firekit, and Lightningkit, fathered by Boulderfrost)

Mistbreeze (Rainkit, Graykit, and Whitekit, fathered by Thistlefang)

**Kits:**

Hazelkit: light brown she-cat (6 moons)

Firekit: brown tabby tom with paws tipped in ginger (6 moons)

Lightningkit: light ginger tabby tom (6 moons)

Rainkit: dark gray tom with white ear tips (4 moons)

Graykit: white she-cat with gray spots (4 moons)

Whitekit: fluffy cream colored she-cat (4 moons)

**Elders:**

Blackfern: fluffy black tom with white ears

Twigfoot: light brown she-cat

**BranchClan**

**Leader: **Highstar: gray tom with white patches

**Deputy: **Rustlingleaf: mottled brown tom

**Medicine Cat: **Redsplash: ginger tom with white underbelly, ear tips, and paws

**Medicine Cat Apprentice: **Mottledpaw: mottled gray she-cat

**Warriors:**

Browneye: longhaired golden she-cat

Glowingspirit: white she cat with silvery spots

Lemmingtooth: light gray tom with a sandy brown muzzle

**Apprentice: **Flatpaw

Stickclaw: bright ginger tom with muddy brown paws

**Apprentice:** Honeypaw

Twigleg: light brown she-cat with unusually long legs

Oakfrost: dark brown tom with light tabby markings

**Apprentice: **Littlepaw

Burstfall: ginger she-cat with cream fore paws

Leopardshine: light orange tabby she-cat

**Apprentice:** Creampaw

Tallheart: black tom with brown stripes and ear tips

Shortnose: blackish-blue tabby tom

**Apprentices:**

Flatpaw: creamy-gold tom (13 moons)

Honeypaw: dark golden tabby she-cat (13 moons)

Creampaw: cream colored she-cat (12 moons)

Littlepaw: black tom (10 moons)

**Queens:**

Twigleg (expecting Oakfrost's kits)

Burstfall (Sunkit, Sapkit, and Reedkit, fathered by Stickclaw)

**Kits:**

Sunkit: dark ginger tom (4 moons)

Sapkit: ginger she cat with cream underbelly (4 moons)

Reedkit: light brown she-cat with darker brown legs (4 moons)

**Elders:**

Amberstripe: ginger she-cat with a single stripe running down her back

Gingermask: dark tabby she-cat with a ginger head

**MountainClan**

**Leader:** Cloudstar: white tom with gray tabby markings

**Deputy: **Stonepelt: dark gray tom

**Medicine Cat: **Dapplecry: black and white she-cat

**Warriors:**

Soaringpetal: gray she-cat

Eaglewing: brown tom with black ears

**Apprentice: **Shadypaw

Birchfeather: white tom with black fore legs

Snowfall: longhaired white she-cat

Mothberry: gray tom with darker gray muzzle and ear tips

**Apprentice: **Emberpaw

Tigerfoot: orange tom with black fore paws

**Apprentice: **Rootpaw

Bloompelt: dark orange she-cat

Foxshadow: dappled black &amp; gray tom

**Apprentice: **Pebblepaw

Sprucetooth: brown tom with white spots

Brightjaw: calico she-cat

**Apprentices:**

Emberpaw: reddish-brown she-cat (9 moons)

Shadypaw: light brown tom with darker brown tail (8 moons)

Rootpaw: brown tom with white paws (8 moons)

Pebblepaw: gray she cat with darker gray tabby markings (8 moons)

**Queens:**

Snowfall (expecting Mothberry's kits)

Soaringpetal (Hawkkit, fathered by Eaglewing)

Brightjaw (Leafkit, fathered by Foxshadow)

**Kits:**

Hawkkit: black tom with light tabby markings (3 moons)

Leafkit: light gray she-cat with dusty brown paws and white underbelly (1 moon)

**Elders:**

Sharprock: grayish-blue tom

Cloudspring: fluffy blackish-blue tom

Blackspeck: black she-cat with tiny white flecks

**Prologue**

_"Branchstar!" Leafdapple's scream met the brown she-cat's ears _just a second too late, and the medicine cat could only watch in horror as the muscular black cat bore down on her. BranchClan's leader fell silently, a glimmer of surprise still shining in her unseeing eyes. All around, the screeches of cats fighting viscously died away as they realized the death of Branchstar. The black cat growled low, a purr rising from her throat. She looked up, a sick, sadistic smile contorted her pretty face, her icy blue eyes narrowed with pleasure, flecks of malicious yellow speckling them.

_"Your leader has fallen," _she hissed, her unusual voice sending chills down the spines of the BranchClan cats. The black she-cat sat back, licking the crimson from her claws with slow deliberation. She chuckled at the horror that spread across the features of the stricken BranchClan, her gaze turning towards Leafdapple, the yellow fading.

The tabby medicine cat stared at the black she-cat coldly, hatred boiling beneath her fur. She growled defiantly, lifting her chin in challenge.

"Leafdapple," the black she-cat purred, sauntered forward and trampling Branchstar's body in her midst. Rainmoon hissed from several fox-lengths away, but one of the black she-cat's followers cuffed him hard, pushing him to the ground. The black she-cat ignored the entire happenstance, her eyes only for Leafdapple. "Your precious StarClan has abandoned your clan in their time of need. And now, they can watch on while I destroy their last medicine cat."

It happened so fast, Leafdapple might have missed the black she-cat's leap if she blinked. In the midst of a split second, Leafdapple found herself sprawling, the black she-cat's claws poised over her throat. She sucked in a breath, her skin hair-lengths away from the icy barbs that would claim her life in a matter of seconds. "Please, Li—" Leafdapple tried to speak, but the she-cat cut her off with a swift cut to the cheek.

"That is _not _my name!" The she-cat screeched, her eyes glinting with yellow once more. Leafdapple stiffened, recognizing the presence of power that they symbolized. _"I am timeless, foolish cat. You will learn to fear me, in death and in life."_

"Shreds is what you will be!" The black she-cat spun, her yellow gaze locked on Rainmoon, whose head rose above the mud. The follower had him pinned to the earth, but that did not stop the determined deputy from squirming under his paws.

"Hm, I think it will be more enjoyable for me to destroy everything you care about, Leafdapple, before I finally tear your broken soul from your body," the black she-cat said, blue now dominating her eyes. She released Leafdapple, and turned to Rainmoon, advancing on him with deadly intent.

"It is you whose soul is broken!" Leafdapple snarled, fearful for the BranchClan deputy. The black she-cat paused, but did not turn.

"Don't you see?" The she-cat hissed from where she stood, hatred and disbelief curdling her voice. "I didn't have a choice! I was born this way! You told me to believe in StarClan, but they let me suffer. I can't control it, so why fight it?" The she-cat turned now, yellow prominent. _"Why fight death when it is inevitable?"_

Leafdapple shuddered, realizing the black she-cat was beyond help. There was nothing that could be done to save her, she would be consumed by her own powers. She rose to her feet shakily, determined to defeat this menace if the cat it had once been was beyond reach. "I'm doing this for you, my friend," Leafdapple promised, leaping forward to pin the she-cat to the earth.

"Friend? You were never my friend! You let it take me, let it torture with pain and death, over and over! You let everything I cared about get torn away from me by it, and now it is your turn!" The black she-cat easily threw Leafdapple off of her, snarling. With that, the fight of color in her eyes was lost, and yellow consumed her once soft blue.

_"Learn pain, you miserable simpleton!" _The yellow-eyed demon's claws trailed Leafdapple's fur, and the dark brown tabby she-cat screamed in pain. She was dying, over and over and over again, in the most horrific ways. An imaginary fire burned her fur where the black she-cat had touched her, and she could feel invisible claws tear right through her body.

Suddenly, the rain that had been pouring in a heavy downfall gave way to a flash of lightning, illuminating the blood-streaked battle field. Someone screamed, and out of the corner of Leafdapple's eyes, she thought she saw the body of a cat slump into the mud. A dark creature, cloaked by dark storm clouds, stood over it, growling lowly. Of all things, Leafdapple had never expected to be saved by wolves.

"Run!" she screamed, leaping to her feet. All around her, the once still cluster of cats erupting into a screaming catastrophe as more wolves appeared in the clearing, their jaws easily snapping the bodies of BranchClan and followers alike. Leafdapple didn't dare stop though, keeping her body running towards the spot the group had agreed to meet up with the others in case the battle went horribly awry, and they were forced to leave the valley.

It felt like moons, but there they were, all the queens and elders and kits huddled together fearfully. They didn't bother asking any questions at the sight of the wild-eyed fleeing warriors, but turned tail and continued up the slopes of the mountain. Leafdapple paused at the pass leading out, turning to look back to where they had stayed for only so many seasons. It had been their home, their hope, but they were being driven away once again. The she-cat shook with sobs, horrified that they would have to leave the body of Branchstar and other fallen comrades behind, but there was nothing to be done. The yellow eyes had won.

Without another word, the medicine cat turned tail, her brown tabby tail disappearing quickly into the shadows of the trees beyond the cursed forest. To herself, the medicine cat knew that this was not the last of BranchClan's troubles with the valley. One day, they would return, and find out what the poor black she-cat had succumbed to. Leafdapple mourned for her death as well, for the creature within her had finally taken her body over. In that night of storms, she spoke the she-cat's name to herself, the memory of the cat she had once been.

If only she had known what dangers her clan would face in the future. Leafdapple would have made sure her clan never returned to the valley again.


	2. Reed: BranchClan

**Hey, everyone! This Guestpersonanonymous, or GP/Guestperson for short. I've decided to finally present a fan fiction that I've been working on since I've been younger, and I hope you enjoy it. Please comment and/or review; this is my first fan fic on the site!**

**Chapter One: BranchClan**

_**R**__eedkit stumbled, trying to keep up with the other cats in her group,_ but to no avail_._ She frowned, squinting through the rays of sunlight that shone through the trees. A cool breeze ruffled the small, brown she-cat's pelt, and she shivered in the early, leaf-fall air. Reedkit stopped for a moment to catch her breath, nosing a brownish-green leaf on the ground. Reedkit had never seen the seasons change before, having been born in late new-leaf. She wondered if she should ask Burstfall, her mother, how it worked, but her thoughts were quickly dispelled when she was suddenly bowled over.

"Gotcha!" Sunkit meowed triumphantly, tail lashing as he perched on his limber sister's body. Reedkit wriggled desperately under her more sturdy-sized brother's paws. "Sap!" she cried out hopefully.

There was a orange blur, and this time, it was Sunkit who went tumbling. Reedkit gave a mrrow of laughter, pleased to see that her assailant got a taste of his own medicine. She cheered Sapkit on as the two ginger kits wrestled in the earth, ignorant of all the cats walking around them with less than friendly faces. Suddenly, a shadow appeared over her littermates' tussling forms, and Reedkit looked up to see Burstfall's stern expression.

"Stop fooling around!" Burstfall scolded, pulling Sapkit off her brother. Sunkit stood up, shaking out his pelt, and looked up in disappointment at his mother. "Aw, but Burstfall!" he protested.

"No 'buts', Sunkit. We are on the move, and we can't hold up the rest of the clan. It's not like how it was when we stayed in the cave." Burstfall said cooly, having set Sapkit down. Reedkit sighed, thinking about her first few moons of life staying in one small area. That seemed like so long ago now; Reedkit's leg ached from walking day after day, and BranchClan showed no signs of stopping. Burstfall had tried to explain that they were nomadic, which meant that they never stayed in one place for very long. It seemed awfully pointless to Reedkit.

With one final stern glance at the three kits, Burstfall turned and started walking again, her pelt quickly disappearing into the crowd of cats who had passed the kits by in their play fighting. Sapkit wrinkled her nose irritably as she stood up, and Reedkit's heart went out to her sister. Out of the three of them, Sapkit had hated their clan's nomadic status the most. She sighed sympathetically, and flicked her tail in the direction of the others. "Well, come on, then."

. . .

They continued walking until sun high, at which time Sapkit began to complain loudly of her sore feet. This earned the kits several glares from the older cats, and Reedkit could hear them grumbling under their breath about how they shouldn't be having kits around. She was tempted to give a good retort, but Reedkit would only land herself in trouble.

She tried to distract herself by looking at the clan's surroundings. Ever since that morning, the clan had been walking downhill, probably into a valley. Reedkit wouldn't be able to know though, not with all the trees in the way. There was a rustling of branches from above, and Reedkit looked up to see one of the clan's apprentices balanced on a branch high above. She heard Sunkit sigh wistfully, and she knew why; BranchClan prided themselves on their ability to leap through a forest of trees without ever touching the ground. There was another rustle, and Reedkit watched as the apprentice elegantly leapt from his branch to another one, and then another. Before long, the older cat was out of sight.

Suddenly, there was a yowl of what sounded like surprise, and Reedkit picked up speed, pelting her way through the ranks of cats until she was a good fox-length ahead everyone else. She slowed, blinking in shock at the sight that met her eyes. Someone called out Reedkit's name, possibly Burstfall, but Reedkit didn't really notice, too amazed by the image before her. They had approached a break in the trees, and a lush, green valley spilled out before Reedkit, sunlight gleaming off the surface of a lake at its center. It was beautiful.

However, Reedkit wasn't able to enjoy the view for long, for there was yet another rustle, this time from the trees below as a group of cats emerged. Reedkit's eyes widened, and she took a step back, bumping into one of the cats that had caught up with her. She looked up, and inadvertantly gasped when she saw Highstar standing before her. He regarded the strange group of cats cooly, seeming to not notice Reedkit.

The strange cats looked a bit nervous when they saw they were drastically out numbered, but one of them stepped forward. "I am Bushpelt, of ForestClan. What is your business? Rogues are not welcome here." He warned, flexing his claws. Reedkit stepped to the side of Highstar, eying the long-haired tom's claws nervously. She'd never seen cats fight before, but would this Bushpelt do so? She blinked in surprise when she realized that Bushpelt had said he was from Forest_Clan_. "We're aren't the only Clan?" she murmured in surprise.

Highstar's tail lashed beside Reedkit, betraying his aggravation, and possible nervousness. Reedkit looked up, frowning when she detected something she thought was confusion in the huge tom's eyes. Burstfall appeared, scooping up Reedkit. "There you ar-"

"We are BranchClan," Highstar said to Bushpelt, inadvertently interrupting Burstfall. The leader straightened himself, and at his full height, he stood much taller than any cat around him. "And we have come home."

_What?_

**Well, first chapter, hope you like it so far. I will update with the next chapter soon. Once again, reviews are much wanted. :3**


	3. Lightning: New Challenges

**Yay! I haz a review! Thanks! :3 I shall oblige . . .**

**Chapter 2: New Challenges**

_(Lightningkit's POV)_

_"Get off me!" Firekit complained, trying to shove his _brother off. Lightningkit purred in amusement, even as the ginger tom below him successfully loosened his grip, and Lightningkit tumbled. He sat up quickly, not wanting to miss a glimpse of the strange cats as they streamed into the camp. A lot of them were brown furred, and looked really light, kind of like what some MountainClan cats were described as being. However, these weren't MountainClan cats.

"Where did they come from?" Whitekit squeaked, eyes wide. The smallest of all the kits, even in her own litter, who were born a couple moons after Firekit, Lightningkit, and Hazelkit, Whitekit had trouble seeing the cats behind the crowd that had gathered in ForestClan camp. Lightningkit secretly seconded her query, wondering why in StarClan were such a big band of rogues doing in their camp. Whitekit's mother, Mistbreeze, frowned at the little white she-cat.

"Hush, Maplestar is about to speak." Mistbreeze said, turning her eyes to the powerful looking cream tom as he emerged from his den. His gaze swept over the strange cats, locking eyes with one very tall cat in particular. Then, his eyes met Bushpelt's, who wavered under his leader's gaze.

"What is the meaning of this, Bushpelt?" It wasn't Maplestar who'd spoken, but Acorneye, the clan deputy, as she sprang to the top of the huge boulder in the center of camp that was used for addressing other cats during meetings. Maplestar quickly joined her, padding up the smooth surface to its precipice. Lightningkit looked up at the pair in awe, admiring the aura of power and command that seemed to radiate from them.

Bushpelt looked nervous for a moment under the inspection of both of his clan's leaders, but then straightened himself. "We found these cats at the edge of their border. Their leader, Highstar," Bushpelt flicked his tail to the tall cat that Maplestar had been staring at earlier. Lightningkit was still amazed by how very _tall_ the cat was. He, too, had an aura of power, and when his gaze swept over the crowd and spied Lightningkit, the young tom froze under his attention. Soon, however, Lightningkit was distracted as Bushpelt continued. "Well, Highstar said, said that-"

Bushpelt stumbled over his words, his tone betraying his disbelief. He sighed, took in a deep breath, and then said, "He said that they have come home!" Outraged cries rippled through ForestClan's ranks, and some of the strangers exchanged nervous looks. Beside Lightningkit, Firekit growled. "This is _our _home!" He whispered.

Maplestar's eyes flashed dangerously, and he sprang from the boulder, striding up to Highstar. He was shorter than the unusually tall stranger, but his anger did not seem any less in Lightningkit's eyes. "Does my senior warrior speak the truth?"

Surprisingly, Highstar seemed calm, even in the face of all this hostility. He sat back, his eyes now level with Maplestar's. "This is BranchClan's home. We had to leave it once, but we have now returned to reclaim what is rightfully ours."

Maplestar growled. "ForestClan, IslandClan, MarshClan, and MountainClan have been here for many, many moons. We will not leave the home of our ancestors simply because some cats were here first."

For the first time, Lightningkit saw surprise in Highstar's eyes. "There are more of you?" he asked.

Maplestar nodded. "Yes, three more clans that you will not stand a chance against."

Highstar looked troubled, but stood up again so he towered over Maplestar once more. "You underestimate my clan, but I will not needlessly waste my warriors lives. However, we will not leave."

Maplestar frowned. "That is a conflicting statement."

"Surely your greedy clans have not taken all the land in the world?"

Maplestar purred, and shook his head. "No, the northern edge of the valley has not been touched. It is steep land, and has few prey."

"We will manage," Highstar promised, a strange look in his eyes. He turned suddenly, walking towards the camp entrance. "Come," he said with a flick of his tail. "We walk." There were a few grumbles from the strange cats, but they all quickly filed behind their leader. All except for a few.

"Hiya!" A cheery voice exclaimed, and Lightningkit turned to see a she-cat about his size padding toward him. "My name is Sapkit, what yours? You do have a name, right? Do your clans have different names? I didn't know there were even other clans!" Lightningkit blinked, a bit bewildered. There were kits in a rogue clan?

"Er . . ." he started to say, when a brown she-cat suddenly appeared beside Sapkit. She frowned at Lightningkit suspiciously. "Sap, come on!"

"Sap?" Firekit said, confusion in his tone. He met the brown she-cat's stare cooly.

"Yeah, it's what Reedkit calls me. We agree that adding kit to the end is dumb, and we're always going to be changing our names throughout our lives, so it's something familiar. Bye!" Sapkit chattered, turning to scamper off after the other cats. Reedkit turned to follow her, paused, looked back at Firekit long and hard, and then ran off.

Lightningkit watched them, and wondered when they would hear from BranchClan again. He blinked, realizing they still didn't even know where the strange cats had come from. Yesterday, all Lightningkit had been wondering about was how much longer until he became an apprentice. But now, there were hundreds of questions swimming in his head as the last BranchClan cat disappeared into the brush.


	4. Wolf: Out of the Ordinary

**Okay, here's Chapter 3. Please tell me what you think! If people are only interested in offering OCs, I have a couple queens who expecting kits!**

**Chapter 3: Out of the Ordinary**

_(Wolfkit's POV)_

_"Did you hear?" Wolfkit's eyes blinked open, settling on the _opening to the nursery den, watching the shifting forms of the cats outside. Their voices rose in excitement, and Wolfkit frowned, knowing she wasn't about to get any sleep. Wearily, she shifted from her litter mates' sides, and poked her head through the leafy branches that partially covered the entrance, squinting in the morning light. There was a heavy sigh behind Wolfkit, and she tensed, sensing movement. A mumble, and then nothing more. Wolfkit cocked her head, listening for the tell-tale heavy breathing that indicated sleep, and relaxed when she realized that Murkykit had simply stirred in her sleep. The others were still, and Wolfkit snuck out of the den, and took a deep breath of the autumn air, her senses tingling in her newfound freedom.

Turning her head, Wolfkit's eyes scanned the periphery of MarshClan's camp, noting the clusters of cats gathered with their heads bent toward each other. They spoke excitedly, and it had been one of their agitated exclamations that had woken Wolfkit. She frowned; she'd always been a light sleeper.

There was a rustle from the camp entrance, and Wolfkit turned her head to see Snakefur, Thornpaw, Toadyowl, Cedarleg, and Ivypaw emerge. The warriors looked weary after their early patrol, but Ivypaw was exuberant. She bounced her way to the apprentice den, where Sleekpaw and Beechpaw were sitting. "Guess what?" she squeaked, her voice reaching Wolfkit's ears.

Beechpaw yawned, and looked at Ivypaw absentmindedly. The oldest of the apprentices, it was only a matter of time before Beechpaw got to take his assessment. However, Sleekpaw perked up at Ivypaw's exclamation. "What is it?" he asked.

"We saw the newcomers!" Ivypaw trilled, excitement obvious in her tone. Some of the cats that were awake turned their heads to regard Ivypaw curiously, who seemed ignorant of their attentions.

Beechpaw had become interested too, for Wolfkit could see his ears perk. "Really? When?"

"Oh, when we were marking the borders with ForestClan," Ivypaw explained, tail lashing in agitation. "Anyway, we saw a patrol that were setting down the borders along the edge of both territories. It was really weird; some of them were flying about in the trees like they were squirrels!"

"That _is _weird!" Sleekpaw said. Beechpaw grumbled beside him. "Of all the times they could've _not _woken me up early."

"What are you looking at?" The tone was less than friendly, and Wolfkit turned away from the conversation to see a dark tabby tom glowering down at her. She frowned up at Thornpaw, only _slightly_ discomforted by how much older he was. Some cats were made warriors as young as twelve moons, and Thornpaw was already thirteen moons of age. Wolfkit, at three moons in age, was tiny beside him.

"What do you mean? Everyone else is watching them." Wolfkit retorted thickly, feeling anger roil up inside her. Thornpaw was always trying to boss around younger cats, and only Beechpaw escaped his attentions. As young as she was, Wolfkit was picked on often, especially when none of the other kits stood up for her. She was . . . different.

Thornpaw's eyes narrowed, and he shoved his head forward until his forehead was almost touching Wolfkit's ears. "Shouldn't you be in the nursery anyway, _kit_?"

Wolfkit bit back another reply, meeting Thornpaw's glare. Beechpaw padded over, snorting at the sight of Wolfkit. "Come on, Thornpaw, don't bother wasting your breath."

Glaring, Thornpaw obeyed, stepping away from Wolfkit and turned to follow his friend. Wolfkit trembled in indignation, seething at the older toms' insults. She had wanted so badly to gouge Thornpaw's eyes out, but she would have gotten in trouble, needless to say. With a snort not unlike the one Beechpaw emitted earlier, Wolfkit too, turned away. She padded over to the nursery, about to stick her head in when Murkykit, Smokekit, Muddykit and Swampkit all charged out as one. They attacked Wolfkit with squeaks of delight, much to the silvery-gray she-cat's dismay. Yowling, she tried to fight the four kits off, and was eventually given mercy as the band turned their attention to another victim.

"Coming, Wolfkit?" Murkykit asked, pausing in her strides to look back at her littermate.

Wolfkit shook her head, almost disdainfully. It seemed silly to attack other cats for no point, especially when Wolfkit often experienced such torture herself.

Murkykit frowned. "Aw, you're no fun!" She sprang away, joining the others in springing Sleekpaw, who'd been unfortunate enough to have been walking by the nursery just then. He yowled, trying to scamper away from his tiny assailants. Over by the fresh-kill pile, Bramblenose -Sleekpaw's mentor- frowned, and opened his mouth to reprimand the kits.

_"Why are we here?" _The voice was high-pitched, and childish, not at all like Bramblenose. Blinking, Wolfkit found herself staring not at MarshClan camp, but a forest full of huge trees, the ground littered with leaves of gold and yellow. There was a crunch, and Wolfkit turned, her head moving alarmingly fast. Suddenly, Wolfkit realized she was no longer a gray kit, but a sandy-brown _mouse_! She squeaked in surprise, and then froze, hearing another huge footstep.

A kit appeared, one with brown fur and long, dark legs. She padded slowly, her face twisted in confusion. _"Why?" _She suddenly meowed. The sound was like the most thunderous roar to Wolfkit's sensitive mouse ears, and she winced. There was a very loud sigh, and Wolfkit twitched her head upwards to find herself looking at a she-cat. She seemed weary like the kit, too, but gave off an air of frustration.

_"I don't know, Reedkit. Perhaps Redsplash had a sign from StarClan that we must return here. All I know is what Highstar told us several moons ago, when you were born, and that this place is BranchClan's home!"_

_BranchClan!_ That was the name of the strange cats that had arrived only a couple days ago! Wolfkit twitched at the revelation, but curiously enough, her mouse body did not move. Instead, it bent its head forward, and poked beneath a leaf to grab a seed. She realized with growing horror that she had no control over the mouse. The mouse suddenly stiffened as the leaf made a tell-tale rustle. The two cats were ominously quiet, a realization Wolfkit just came to as the world was suddenly alight with pain. She was no longer on the forest floor, but held between the jaws of the she-cat who'd spoken moments before. The mouse struggled desperately, but there was a sudden snap, and then the world was black.

Shaking, Wolfkit blinked her eyes open again to find herself back in her normal, old body. "Wolfkit?"

Turning, Wolfkit saw Bravescreech looking down at her with concern in her eyes. "Are you alright? You look like you just saw StarClan for the first time."

"Y-yeah, I'm fine," Wolfkit stuttered, willing her body to stop shivering. It wouldn't, and the memory of pain and empty blackness remained in Wolfkit's mind. Had that been what dying felt like? She shuddered. Wolfkit felt incredibly glad to be a cat; ending up as someone's meal seemed horrifying.

"You don't seem fine," Bravescreech admonished, the look of worry in her eyes still present. "Come on, maybe we should have Poolflight look at you."

"O-okay," Wolfkit said, although she secretly thought that what had just happened wasn't normal. As Bravescreech led her to the medicine den, Wolfkit couldn't help wondering what the vision had meant.

**O.o What _does _it mean Wolfkit? You can all found out sooner or later, depending on whether I get any reviews or not. I'll post the next chapter soon, probably tomorrow. This was just meant to be an introductory chapter, but I can't help trying to move things along. Recommend your own stories to me, and I'll Read and Review them!**


	5. Moon: More Than a Dream

**Sorry for posting a "review" in my own story. If I can, I will delete it. I didn't want anyone to think that I purposely made my sister come on the site or anything. She just wanted to get people interested in my story. I suppose I won't be getting anymore reviews anytime soon, but I will continue the story because I like writing, and because I have two people who have expressed interest.**

**On with the show! This is about the character my sister made for the story, since she insisted in having her own character. Sorry if there are those of you who think "Moon" is a Mary-Sue suffix. I wasn't aware of that until several years after adapting the story, and I'm not about to change it. At least it wasn't "Star". **

**Chapter 4: More Than a Dream**

_(Moonkit's POV)_

_Cold. So much cold. Water soaked into the gray kit's fur, a deadly weight on her paws as she tried desperately to push back against the river's current. She cried out, desperately reaching for the cat on the riverbank, bobbing in and out of view as the waves pummeled her. She screamed, and water tore into her maw, clogging her lungs with cold and wet death. The kit couldn't speak any longer, coughing desperately as the river carried her further. However, just before she was pulled under, she locked eyes with the cat who'd done this to her, condemned her, forced her life onto a different path. Blue eyes met blue, and the kit was again frightened by the similarity, the dim realization that her own family did this to her. Left her to die in the rain-engorged waters before she was even a moon old. _

_There was a cry, a flash, and then water, only water. It surged around the gray kit, forcing her deeper and deeper. Her lungs wailed for air as her voice cried out for her mother, for warmth, and sanctuary. There was no one to hear her plea, though, for even her lungs was only given more water. Her screams drowned out before they could reach her ears. _

_Death. She was going to die. This realization came to the kit, but rather than continue to struggle desperately, she stilled. It was a clarity, a painful truth, and the kit felt suspended between this moment and the next, life and death. Then, there was a presence, surrounding the kit like the comforting touch the kit had been starved for. A voice, deep and comforting, spoke, seeming to come from all around the kit in the water, _The water will never destroy its own. It swells as the moon does, following its every command.

Moonkit gasped, air filling her lungs. It had been only a dream, one that she had so many times, but it always seemed so _real_. Perhaps it had been real, a cruel memory of her first days of life. Her mother, Silverfall, had told her she had been found abandoned it the woods of IslandClan territory, on the banks of the river that fed into the lake at the center of the clans' valley. Of course, Silverfall wasn't her real mother, but she and her brother Minnowtail had decided to take charge of the motherless kit once she was done nursing. Fortunately, Pouncestar, IslandClan's leader, had recently delivered kits, and was able to feed Moonkit. Since no one knew what Moonkit's real name was, they'd named her Moonkit after the white patch of fur on her forehead, and the fact she'd been found during the full moon, which was the time of the Gathering.

Recently, Moonkit had been having dreams, all fairly similar, but never before had there been that voice. Moonkit had always woken up in terror beforehand. Oftentimes, she would get shushed by Fernkit or Wavekit; Pouncestar's kits. They hated Moonkit for some reason, jealous of all the attention she got. The other kits weren't as unfriendly, but none of them ever were interested in playing with her. It was painful, having to accept the fact that no one liked her, even her own family. Today wasn't any different; Fernkit stirred, and glared irritably at Moonkit. She'd accidentally kicked him in her sleep, Moonkit realized, noticing where her unsheathed claws had nicked Fernkit's dark fur.

"Pouncestar, Moonkit _hurt _me!" Fishkit wailed in accusation, looking up at his mother with a pained expression. Moonkit stiffened in horror, wondering what Pouncestar would do. The powerfully built she-cat stirred, looking at her kit through half-opened eyelids. Beside her, Wavekit also awoke, and Moonkit couldn't help admiring their deep, black fur, which seemed to have a deep, blue sheen that Fernkit lacked. However, the admiration was short-lived as Pouncestar's gaze settled on Moonkit.

"Moonkit? Is this true?" Surprisingly, Pouncestar's voice was gentle, and patient, and the hairs on Moonkit's neck lowered. She was glad the she-cat wasn't angry, but the understanding of the older cats mattered little when it came to the cats of Moonkit's age. _"Perhaps with time,"_ Silverfall had once said when Moonkit confessed her frustrations with the other kits. Moonkit had loudly asked what that had been supposed to mean, but Silverfall shushed her.

Moonkit lowered her head, hoping that Pouncestar wouldn't punish her. "Y-yes, I accidentally kicked him in my sleep."

Fernkit snorted, and Pouncestar shot him a pointed glare. She nodded solemnly and rose. "Alright then, I believe you Moonkit."

"But-" Fernkit protested.

"I have things to do, Fernkit. I have my duties as leader; I can't spend all my time with you. We can settle this later, I have a meeting to call." Awkwardly, Pouncestar rose, and clambered out of her nest, joints snapping into place audibly. Ducking her head, the blackish-blue furred she-cat crawled out of the nursery.

"This is all your fault!" Fernkit hissed, tail lashing. His sister, Wavekit, rose and nodded. "Yeah, no one likes you. Even your mom threw you in a river. You're _useless_!" Moonkit flinched at the last word, wishing Silverfall was here. However, the gray cat had gotten up early, and was probably sorting herbs in the den.

"I-I'm not!" Moonkit exclaimed, but her voice sounded uncertain and weak, even to her. Wavekit and Fernkit looked smug.

"Yes, you are!" Wavekit insisted, shoving Moonkit. The gray kit fell without protest, trembling beneath the two black cats. Fernkit laughed, and shoved her back further. "Useless," he jeered.

"Useless!" Moonkit tumbled again, turning to face the nest of the other three kits, and their mother, and she dimly realized that they weren't there. There was no one to help her.

"Useless!" Came the cry again, and paws rained down on Moonkit fur.

_"Useless! Useless! Useless!" _Something inside Moonkit snapped, and rage poured forth, her senses tingling. She whirled around, lashing out at Wavekit and Fernkit. Her tiny claws drew no blood, but that didn't stop the kits from wailing in pain. Moonkit screeched, her rage and pain greater than the two small kits before her. _"No, I'm _not!"

She ran from the nursery, not looking back, the wails of the two kits falling numbly on her ears. Moonkit ran blindly, bumping into cats here and there, but didn't stop, not even when she reached the long reeds surrounding IslandClan camp. Before she knew it, water was lapping around Moonkit's paws. IslandClan camp was situated on an island in the lake. It's position enabled warriors to spy possible attackers from a long ways off, and most cats couldn't swim through the deep water to reach the island. Moonkit took a long look at the distant shore, and beyond, looking in awe at the mountains that surrounded the valley. Their peaks were thrust into the sky, higher than Moonkit could see, for the mountains seemed to disappear into the clouds. The sight was enough for Moonkit to forget her troubles completely, observing the huge formations curiously.

How did one live so high up, Moonkit wondered. MountainClan didn't even go very far up, though they were situated higher than the other clans. Moonkit tried to imagine reaching the top of a mountain. Would she be able to see the whole world? Would she be able to see the place where her family was? The idea of such a journey appealed to Moonkit, but she wasn't able to swim across the lake. That wouldn't happen until she became an apprentice.

"Moonkit!" A stern voice called, and Moonkit turned to see Silverfall's angry face. _If _she became an apprentice, she corrected herself mentally, remembering how she had struck at Fernkit and Wavekit. What a mouse brain she was.

"Come here!" Silverfall demanded, tail lashing angrily. Fernkit and Wavekit appeared beside her, looking very smug indeed. Silverfall looked down at them, and they immediately changed their stature to look like they were on the verge of tears. Wavekit even started to limp around. Moonkit couldn't help rolling her eyes.

Silverfall shot a glare at her, and Moonkit cowered. "These two told me that you called them 'useless', because Fishkit told on you for kicking him. Not only that, you tried to hurt them! What do you have to say for yourself?" Moonkit looked down at the ground, flexing her tiny claws in frustration. _How dare they try to suggest _I_ called them 'useless', _she thought in rage.

"Apologize right now!" Silverfall exclaimed. Moonkit hesitated, and Silverfall leaned forward. "_Now_, Moonkit!"

"I'm sorry," Moonkit said through gritted teeth, glaring at Fernkit and Wavekit, who only seemed further pleased. Moonkit lashed her tail; this was so unfair!

"Good, you'd better be." Silverfall said, relaxing a bit. She turned to Fernkit and Wavekit. "Go see Goldenfur about getting something to help you, okay?" The two kits nodded, and limped away.

"You are coming with me," Silverfall ordered, looking back at Moonkit. She lowered her head, and followed her mother, but didn't feel the least bit sorry. Moonkit glared at the ground as it swept by, and bumped into Silverfall when she pausing. Looking up, Moonkit saw Pouncestar was in the middle of a ceremony, saying, "Then by the powers bestowed to me by StarClan, I give you your warrior names."

Standing before Pouncestar was Willowpaw and Wingpaw, looking as proud as could be. Silverfall beamed, looking just as proud, and Moonkit knew why. Willowpaw and Wingpaw were her real kits, fathered by Sandnose, and were about to become warriors. Pouncestar stepped forward, momentarily expelling Moonkit's gloomy thoughts as she bent her head toward Willowpaw. "From this day forward, you will be known as Willowsong. StarClan honors your patience and integrity, and we welcome you as a full member of IslandClan."

Next was Wingpaw. "From this day forward, you will be known as Wingbreeze. StarClan honors your determination and loyalty, and you are welcomed as a full member of IslandClan."

As Wingbreeze licked Pouncestar's shoulder, the voices of the clan swelled around Moonkit, and her own voice joined them. "Willowsong! Wingbreeze! Willowsong! Wingbreeze!" Moonkit looked at the two new warriors wistfully, wishing that she belonged to IslandClan as strongly as they did. However, Silverfall was not really her mother, and IslandClan was not really her home. Someplace, somewhere, Moonkit's real family lived.

**So, what do you think? Please let me know! Now that I'm done introducing all the cats, I won't go in as regular an order. Who knows, there might even be cases where I'll have one POV for two chapters in a row, or multiple POVs in one chapter. **


	6. Fire: Gather Under the Moon

**Hello again! I'm so very sorry for not updating; I had break recently and a bunch of other things. Thank you for the positive review, Ashbreeze, but I would like to note that HockeyStar is most definitely female. . . **

**There is a bit of a timeskip in this chapter, but I suppose you won't mind.**

**Chapter 5: Gather Under the Moon**

_(Firepaw's POV)_

_"Let's see that crouch one more time, Firepaw," Thistlefang ordered, unimpressed with the new apprentice's _previous efforts. Firepaw gritted his teeth, and sank bank into his haunches once more. He could feel the gazes of the other apprentices and mentors burning into his pelt as he snuck forward, hindquarters wiggling as each foot was set down precariously on the forest ground, careful not to disturb the many colorful leaves that littered the ground. He paused, flanks heaving with exertion, and began again, creeping forward across the clearing. _  
_

Firepaw, Hazelpaw, and Lightningpaw had been promoted to apprenticeship only a couple weeks earlier, the day after BranchClan's climatic return to their ancestral home. Leaf-fall was in full, all the leaves having turned into a fiery display of color. It was a breath-taking sight, and Firepaw thought it was his favorite time of seasons so far in his life. Not even the dwindling number of prey could deter Firepaw's liking for the golden and brown leaves that rustled slightly as his feet moved among them.

Thistlefang sighed, and Firepaw knew instantly that the huge gray tom was still unsatisfied. He sat back, and turned to regard his mentor, irritated that he'd spent all morning going through the same motions, and hadn't actually done any hunting yet. When was Firepaw going to do something worthwhile, like battle training? He slapped at a nearby leaf in his frustration, turning his gaze away from Thistlefang.

"Firepaw, how many times have I told you-" Thistlefang began, moving forward to lecture his apprentice. However, a tabby gray she-cat blocked his way, looking up at the larger tom sternly with her icy blue eyes.

"We've been standing here since sunrise, Thistlefang, and it's practically sun-high," she exclaimed, pointing her tail upwards to indicate the distant ball of light that was high in the sky. "We ought to move on, or at least give the other apprentices a chance to practice their hunting crouch as well. Give Firepaw a break."

Thistlefang growled, and Firepaw wondered what the large tom would do. However, he only turned away, disgust evident on his face. "Fine then, Skyleaf. Have it _your _way." The tom retired to a corner of the clearing, and seemed content to glare at everyone else while he watched the proceedings.

Skyleaf nodded in satisfaction, and then turned to the other mentors; Goosecloud, and Ashear. The other two apprentices and mentors were currently on patrols. Firepaw envied them, wondering how it must feel to be able to run freely through the forest, either patrolling borders or hunting to feed the clan. He had yet to know, and couldn't wait to have the experience.

"I remember one of the first moves I learned as an apprentice," Skyleaf was saying, and Firepaw pushed away his thoughts to listen excitedly. Finally, they were going to do some battle training! "When you first start out, you're very small, and so my mentor reasoned that it would be best to learn how to defend oneself when pinned by a much larger warrior.

"Ashear and I will demonstrate how the move is done," Skyleaf continued, indicating Ashear. The tortoiseshell she-cat dipped her head, leaving the side of her apprentice, Mosspaw. Skyleaf went into a crouch, and Ashear did the same. Firepaw's eyes widened in anticipation, and his ears pricked. Suddenly, Skyleaf let out an ear-splitting screech, and launched herself at Ashear. The tortoiseshell side-stepped her, and shoved Skyleaf to the ground. Hazelpaw let out her breath sharply, and Firepaw glanced at her. Did she think her mentor was going to get hurt?

Meanwhile, Skyleaf recovered, and tried to lift herself off the ground, but Ashear had her pinned. Snarling, Skyleaf lashed out at Ashear's exposed belly with her hind legs, claws sheathed. The tortoiseshell hissed in pain, stumbling away from Skyleaf, who sprang to her feet. Both she-cats were breathing heavily, but Skyleaf turned to grin at the apprentices. "Now it's your turn," she said with a purr.

Goosecloud stepped forward, and pointed his tail at Mosspaw and his apprentice, Lightningpaw. "You two will pair off, and Hazelpaw and Firepaw will be partners. Take turns being pinned and raking the other cat's belly. Remember, claws _sheathed_."

Firepaw turned to face Hazelpaw, who grinned at him. "Just because you are my brother doesn't mean I'm going to take it easy on you," she warned, tail lashing in anticipation."

"Noted," Firepaw replied, sinking into a crouch, and grimacing at the familiar burn in his muscles. "I won't be taking it easy on you either," he muttered under his breath, too quiet for Hazelpaw to hear. He shot forward, and could have let out a shout of exhilaration, adrenaline pumping through his body as he moved towards Hazelpaw. The she-cat's eyes widened in terror a split second before Firepaw slammed into her, pleasure streaming through him at his successful assault. However, the feeling was short-lived, for moments later, Hazelpaw's paws struck at Firepaw's underside. He growled, and sunk his paws deeper into Hazelpaw's shoulders. She shrieked, and her next strike was below his sternum. The wind went out of Firepaw, and he stumbled away, promptly releasing Hazelpaw.

"I told you I wasn't going easy on you," Hazelpaw said in exasperation, rising to her feet. Her eyes were shining, however, and Firepaw couldn't help feeling envious of her victory. He felt frustrated at the lack of a counter-attack or defense against the move they were learning, and could only hope that next time, he would be able to side-step Hazelpaw.

"I know," Firepaw replied once he finally got his breath back. "Now it's your turn." He went down once more, belly skimming the ground. Hazelpaw smirked at him, and followed suit, in a crouch for several moments before she finally moved forward. Firepaw was slammed to the ground, and his breathing became shallow once more. However, he had enough coherency to lash at Hazelpaw's stomach. The she-cat screeched, and Firepaw blinked when he realized his claws had been unsheathed. Blood oozed from the shallow cuts, and a single drop fell onto Firepaw's leg.

Hazelpaw leapt away from Firepaw, and turned to look at the gash on her belly. Skyleaf ran forward to examine the apprentice's wound, and turned to regard Firepaw. "Did you do this?" She asked, frowning.

"Yes." Firepaw looked at her head-on, feeling a little remorseful that he'd hurt Hazelpaw, but it hadn't been that bad, had it?

"Firepaw! Didn't I just say that we were to keep our claws _sheathed?_" Goosecloud exclaimed in exasperation, running over to Hazelpaw's side. "Now neither of you will be allowed to go to the Gathering!"

The Gathering? Firepaw blinked, and realized that the Gathering would be tonight. It was the full moon, after all! He groaned when he realized that Lightningpaw was going to get to go without him now. It was so unfair!

"Come on, then, Hazelpaw needs to see a healer. We can practice some more later."

"I have an announcement to make!" Maplestar meowed. Lightningpaw looked up from the mouse he was eating, and wondered if Maplestar was going to say who was going to the Gathering. He hoped he would get to go, but at the same time, he felt guilty that Hazelpaw and Firepaw wouldn't be able to. If only Firepaw had been able to control himself! "Sageflower, Boulderfrost, Mallowleap, Goosecloud, Ashear, Applepaw, Birchpaw, Mosspaw, and Lightningpaw will all accompany Acorneye and I to the Gathering! Bushpelt, Ripplefall, Thistlefang, Skyleaf, Firepaw, and Hazelpaw will all stay behind to guard the camp. Those going to the Gathering should get some rest in the mean time. This meeting is now adjoined."

Lightningpaw could've jumped as far as the stars in his excitement, and scampered over to Mosspaw. "What is the Gathering like?" He mewed, curious.

The dark tabby was grooming her pelt, and purred at noticing Lightningpaw's excitement. "It's always a bit scary at first seeing all these cats in one place. But it's also really fun, because you meet new cats, and learn what's happening in the other clans. You know, they're not that much different from us."

"Really?" Lightningpaw said, surprised. He remembered when BranchClan had come to camp, and they seemed very different to him.

"Yeah," Mosspaw assured him, nodding. "You'll see."

Mosspaw was right about one thing. Seeing all those cats in one place was overwhelming! Lightningpaw stumbled in his shock as the ForestClan patrol spilled into the glen. He gasped when he saw the blackened husk of a gigantic stump, the remnants of a tree that had bigger than anything in the valley. Already perched on one of its huge roots were the leaders of IslandClan and MarshClan; Flishclaw and Lilystar. Fishclaw represented IslandClan while Pouncestar cared for their kits. MountainClan had not yet arrived, but the glen was already teeming with cats of all colors and sizes.

"I'll show you some of my friends," Mosspaw offered, seeing Lightningpaw's nervousness. He nodded weakly, and they sprang together into the throng of felines. Mosspaw stopped suddenly when they came by two she-cats talking together. Judging by their size, they were both apprentices. One was a pretty-looking tortoiseshell, and the other was a longhaired white she-cat with partially gray legs.

"Lightningpaw, this is Ivypaw, and Marigoldpaw. Ivypaw's from MarshClan, and Marigoldpaw's from IslandClan." Mosspaw said, introducing the two she-cats.

"Nice to meet you, Lightningpaw." Ivypaw quipped.

"Where are your brothers?" Mosspaw asked.

"Oh, Sleekpaw and Troutpaw are probably just congratulating Beechleaf, and Thornfrost. It took them _forever_ to become warriors, you know." Ivypaw said in an offhanded way, obviously exasperated.

"Oh, look, there's MountainClan! Now the Gathering can get started!" Marigoldpaw exclaimed. Indeed, there the patrol was, spilling out of the trees with Cloudstar at their head. The longhaired, gray-striped white tom sprang onto the root alongside Maplestar, Fishclaw, and Lilystar.

"The Gathering will now begin!" The tom yowled. Almost immediately the sound of chatter died away, and all the cats looked at the four leaders expectantly. Lightningpaw had half a mind to wonder why BranchClan had not been a part of the Gathering, but he wasn't about to ask.

"I will start," Lilystar mewed, rising to the forefront of the root. "MarshClan has been doing well for the start of this leaf-fall. Our fresh-kill pile is still as high as ever, and recently, two new warriors have joined our ranks. Beechleaf, and Thornfrost, please stand!" The two cats, one light brown, the other, a dark grey, rose from the ranks.

"Beechleaf! Thornfrost! Beechleaf! Thornfrost!" The clans cheered. Lightningpaw hoped that one day, he would be the one whose warrior name echoed through the clearing. As long as Hazelpaw and Firepaw were there to stand beside him, of course. If only they could be here . . .

"That is all from MarshClan," Lilystar meowed, stepping back so Fishclaw could take her place.

"IslandClan has also had a good green-leaf. We too, have two new warriors; Willowsong and Wingbreeze!"

"Willowsong! Wingbreeze! Willowsong! Wingbreeze!"

Maplestar was next, and Lightningpaw tensed. No doubt he was going to mention Lightningpaw's apprenticeship. However, as he opened his mouth, there was a cry from a cat near the fringes of the glen. "It's BranchClan."

There was a collective gasp as the band of cats appeared, and Highstar padded up to the root to stand beside the other leaders, who regarded him coolly. There were cries of outrage from the clearing, and several dared to say, "You don't belong here This is our home!"

"Silence!" Highstar roared, tail lashing. The cats quieted, but there was an air of tension among the cats, and BranchClan stood huddled alone in the glen, an empty space around them even though cats surrounded them on all sides.

"BranchClan has returned, and will not leave!" He said, his eyes piercing the crowd. "Any cat who objects can speak now!" There was silence.

"I believe it was _my _turn to speak." Maplestar said pointedly, unamused with Highstar's unexpected arrival.

"Of course," Highstar said in what Lightningpaw was sure was a mocking tone.

"ForestClan just recently acquired three new apprentices!" Maplestar announced, as if nothing had transpired since he last tried to speak. "Unfortunately Firepaw and Hazelpaw were unable to join us, so we only have Lightningpaw here tonight!"

"Firepaw! Lightningpaw! Hazelpaw!" The cats chanted, but to Lightningpaw's ears it sounded half-hearted, and only a fraction of the cats even said anything, their gazes turned towards BranchClan.

"MountainClan has not had any important happenings since Leafkit's birth." Cloudstar announced, looking at Highstar curiously. "However, we are as strong as ever, and ready for the approaching leaf-bare."

Highstar stood, knowing it was his turn. "BranchClan has finally finished making its camp. Our medicine cat and his apprentice will join yours on the next half moon to share tongues with StarClan. Twigleg, one of our warriors, is predicted to have her kits soon, and they will be a grand addition to our clan. BranchClan is not afraid of any potential threat from the other clans. The stars have guided us here, and will not mislead us."

Lilystar sprang forward. "The Gathering is now over!"

"See you later!" Mosspaw exclaimed to Ivypaw and Sleekpaw, and Lightningpaw followed her as they rejoined the ForestClan patrol. He couldn't help wondering if something bad might happen now that BranchClan had arrived. The clans might be okay with it now, but what about when leaf-bare came? Lightningpaw had never experienced leaf-bare, but the stories about it made him wonder if MountainClan and ForestClan would try to steal prey from the newcomers. It was a good thing that leaf-bare only lasted three moons, Lightningpaw thought with a shudder.

**Tell me what you think! Do you think my characters are a little two-dimensional? Please let me know! Also, sorry if I made a very long chapter, but I prefer them, personally. Makes the story move along a little faster. Also, Twigleg is going to have her kits in the next couple of chapters or so, and if you want to have a character in the story, please let me know. Otherwise, I have some planned.**


	7. Reed: Little Miracle

**Hello, GP again! I think you guys can already expect that I won't update nearly as fast as everyone else on this site. Even now it would be smarter for me to further postpone this and get my homework finished. However, my sister might kill me if I don't, so here I am!**

**Whether you guys didn't notice, forgot, or didn't want to submit OCs, I didn't get any. Twigleg's going to have her kitting in this chapter, though, so if you wanted any of your OCs to be featured, there will be future opportunities.**

**There's another timeskip in this chappie again (the first handful were all within the span of a couple weeks in IC time), as you will see.**

**Chapter 6: Little Miracle**

**_A _**_chill settled over the BranchClan camp, leaf-fall quickly tightening its_ icy grasp on the valley. In her nest alongside Sapkit and Sunkit, Reedkit shivered, trying to block out the cold that was trying to seep into her bones. The little brown she-cat nestled closer to her mother, trying to find the warmth that normally pulsated from her fur. The nighttime gloom was preceded by mist, wreathing into the nursery den with icy wet tendrils. Reedkit stiffened at the sudden moisture, and wrinkled her nose. Her mother said that leaf-bare felt ten times colder than nights like this, and Reedkit could only imagine what such cold was like.

Suddenly, there was a sharp intake of breath from Twigleg, who'd been bed-ridden for the past couple of days, her belly protruding noticeably. The brown she-cat moaned and turned over in her sleep, brow furrowed. Reedkit observed her with taught muscles, wondering if Twigleg was sick, or something. Burstfall had said that she was going to kit soon, and Reedkit frowned at the memory of that conversation. If kitting caused as much pain as it seemed to give Twigleg, Reedkit wasn't sure she ever wanted any.

Twigleg cried out, and her green eyes shot open. "Redsplash! Redsplash!" the laboring she-cat screeched.

There was a rustle from outside the den; a multitude of curious voices, and then a dark ginger head poked into the den, yellow eyes wide with concern. "Is everything alright?"

"Yes, I'm perfectly fine!" Twigleg said, her voice dripping with sarcasm as a contraction wracked her body. She wailed, curling into a fetal position. "Aren't you supposed to give me something to ease the pain?" she exclaimed, panting.

Redsplash only looked at her, exasperated at the queen's attitude, and then turned his head. "Mottledpaw?"

"Yes, Redsplash?" A young cat's voice answered.

"Get me some chervil and raspberry leaves, and a stick while you're at it!" Redsplash yowled. He turned to Burstfall, who was now awake. "I need you to take you and your kits outside the den. I work easier without other cats breathing down my shoulder."

Burstfall nodded, and nudged Sapkit to her feet. The sleepy she-cat yawned, and blinked sleepily. Burstfall grabbed Sunkit and hauled him out of the den, Sapkit at her heels. Reedkit followed, looking back at Twigleg and Redsplash one more time before stepping out of the den. Outside, some cats were already awake, their ears perked attentively. One of these cats, a brown tabby tom, stepped forward, anxious.

"Twigleg! Is she alright?" The tom mewed worriedly.

Burstfall gave him comforting touch with the tip of her tail, setting Sunkit down. "Don't worry Oakfrost, Twigleg will be perfectly fine."

"I hope you're right," Oakfrost exclaimed, his eyes straying to the nursery den.

A small, mottled gray she-cat darted through the clearing, a stick in her mouth and a bundle of tart-smelling leaves tucked under her chin. With a flick of her tail, the cat disappeared into the nursery, and Reedkit recognized her for Mottledpaw, the clan's medicine cat apprentice. _I wonder what being a medicine cat is like, _Reedkit mused, watching the entrance as Twigleg howled again.

Oakfrost shifted worriedly from one foot to the other, and all stiffened when there was an audible _snap! _"Twigleg!" Oakfrost ran into the den.

Redsplash appeared, disgruntled and a tad weary looking. He gazed sternly at Oakfrost, shooing the tom away. "It's alright Oakfrost, we just gave her a stick to help her along. If it makes you feel any better, we also gave her some chervil and raspberry leaves. They should ease the pain."

"I want to see her!" Oakfrost snarled, his tail lashing in frustration.

"Redsplash! The first kit is coming!" Mottledpaw's yowl came from inside.

"Please wait," Redsplash ordered, and then he was gone again. Oakfrost sat down in defeat, green eyes narrowed. The next few minutes passed at a snail's pace, and Reedkit wondered if Twigleg's cries of pain and the splintering of wood would never cease. Finally, an eerie silence filled the air, and all ears were perked forward at attention. All around Reedkit, the silence was bent under the murmurs of anxious cats.

"Do you think she's okay?"

"Mottledpaw sure sounded worried!"

"I wonder if there's any blood."

"How many kits do you suppose?"

"Do you think any are stillborn?"

All this and more were spoken in quick, hushed whispers, bubbling all around Reedkit. At first, she tried to see which cats had said what, but there were too many indistinct snitches and snatches of conversation, too many little group of cats huddled together under the half-moon claw in the sky. Reedkit looked up, and remembered a meeting from several days ago, after BranchClan had went to the other clans' Gathering. Highstar had said that the medicine cats were to go to the Moon Falls alongside all other medicine cats during the half-moon to share tongues with StarClan. Reedkit wondered if that night was tonight. Would the other cats be mad if Redsplash and Mottledpaw didn't come?

Reedkit looked over at Oakfrost, trying to dispel her unease. The tom sat dutifully at the den entrance, unmoving. Everytime, Twigleg had screamed, Oakfrost had flinched, but otherwise didn't move. Reedkit wondered why he would stay to listen to his mate's pain. Why didn't he try to distract himself, or run away. Reedkit trembled, wanted to run and hide herself.

"Why does he stay there, Burstfall? Why does he stay and listen? Doesn't it hurt him?" Reedkit squeaked, looking up at her mother's gentle eyes. Burstfall smiled, her face crinkling, and Reedkit was struck by how old and tired she looked, as if she had grown moons older in the span of a couple hours.

"It's because he loves her, Reedkit." Burstfall said, her voice full of warmth. Reedkit pressed herself further into her mother's fur, drinking in her comforting scent of milk and sweetness. Her brow furrowed in confusion, unable to understand what Burstfall meant. As if she understood what her kit was thinking, Burstfall said, "You may not understand now, but you will in time."

Suddenly, a dark gray head peeked through the ferns woven around the den, and Oakfrost stood suddenly, ears perked. "Congratulations," Mottledpaw murmured, her voice weary and soft. "You have a little she-cat."

Oakfrost pushed passed her, and Mottledpaw padded over to Burstfall. "You can go back in and sleep now." Around them, cats began to disperse, heading back to their dens nestled into and around the huge trees that hugged their campground. Reedkit yawned, and followed her mother back into the den. She was tired, but also curious. What was the she-cat's name? What did she look like?

Inside the den, Twigleg and Oakfrost were curled around each other, purring deeply, and their heads bent towards each other. Nestled against Twigleg's chest was a mewling kit. Leaning forward, Reedkit looked on in awe at the tiny kit, a dark brown tabby with white forelegs and patches that dotted her body.

"What did you name her?" Sapkit squeaked, eyes wide.

Twigleg opened one sleepy eye, and sighed, too tired to speak. Oakfrost spoke for her. "Birdkit. After Twigleg's mother, Runningbird."

"She looks . . .just like her." Twigleg said quietly, all of her former energy and spunk gone. Gently, the young queen began to stroke her kit, purring quietly.

"Come along now, let Twigleg rest." Burstfall said sternly, pulling her kits toward her.

"Were we ever that small?" Sunkit asked.

Burstfall nodded. "Yes, and you might have been even smaller. _I _was once that small."

Sunkit wrinkled his nose, and Reedkit could tell he didn't believe her. She, too, found it hard to believe that her huge mother could have ever been as small as tiny Birdkit. Reedkit snuck one more look at the tiny kit before finally curling up with her litter mates and Burstfall. Somehow, the den seemed warmer then it did when Reedkit had last tried to sleep this night.

Reedkit padded after Mottledpaw, watching the she-cat curiously as she sifted through the leaves in the medicine den, one of many niches found beneath the roots of the huge redwood trees. There weren't many leaves, obviously, but there more than Reedkit could have expected Redsplash and Mottledpaw to have gathered in the span of a few weeks, especially when all the plants seemed to be dying. Burstfall said it was a part of leaf-fall, hence the name, and Reedkit wondered how the clans got by without fresh herbs during leaf-bare.

"Let's see . . . there's some chamomile from awhile back that we can use and some juniper berries, and oh, we still have some ragweed it seems. It's a wonder how Redsplash managed to carry all of this. Probably got some of the warriors to pitch in. . ." Mottledpaw was saying, unaware of Reedkit's presence behind her. The she-cat was busy sorting leaves and berries into little bundles, seemingly at random in Reedkit's mind. However, the little kit could see the purpose in Mottledpaw's paws, and wondered what the apprentice was up to.

"Hey, Mottledpaw!" she exclaimed. Mottledpaw jumped, upsetting some of the bundles of leaves and causing them to scatter all over the den. Reedkit watched in display as she accidentally ruined Mottledpaw's hard work. "Oh, I'm so sorry!"

"That's alright, Reedkit. I just wanted to sort out some traveling herbs ahead of time for when we go to the Moon Falls tonight." Mottledpaw said, smoothing down her fur with her tongue. The apprentice settled back on her haunches and began to sift through the mess to discern some order in the pile.

"Well, I still feel like I should help," Reedkit mewed, moving to Mottledpaw's side. She reached out and pulled a blue-colored berry towards herself. "What's this?"

"That's juniper." Mottledpaw explained, putting a leaf to the side. "How about you sort all the juniper berries into one pile, and the ragweed." she suggested, holding up the leaf.

"Okay!" Reedkit said, already pulling the rest of the juniper berries towards her. When the leaves resisted against her paw pushing them along the floor, Reedkit grabbed them with her teeth. Mottledpaw told her to be careful not to bite down and extract the juices. "You not the one going to the Moon Falls after all."

Reedkit put the leaf down carefully, and looked up at Mottledpaw curiously. "Why do you need to go to the Moon Falls anyway? What's so special about it?"

Mottledpaw looked at her thoughtfully, and discontinued her work. "Normally, in BranchClan, we have to wait for StarClan to send dreams or signs to us to communicate with them. The clans here, though, aren't nomadic and have a sort of entrance to StarClan that they can visit regularly. It's reliable I suppose and a good way of forging bonds among medicine cats."

"Oh, okay," Reedkit said.

Mottledpaw's eyes brightened. "Redsplash said I might even get my medicine cat name tonight! I'll be the first cat of BranchClan to become a medicine cat in our old home in countless moons!"

"Just like Birdkit was the first to be born here in a long, long time." Reedkit said thoughtfully. She wondered what that would be like, not knowing how BranchClan had lived before, wandering through seemingly endless forests, and passing by huge mountains, like the ones that encircled the valley they lived in now.

"Yes," Mottledpaw murmured. She began to sort the leaves again, but her eyes still held a sparkle of anticipation and excitement. "I wonder what my name will be! Maybe something typical like Mottledfur or Mottledspots. Or maybe something really unique, like Mottleddream!"

"Or maybe a mix of both," Reedkit said, purring. It was not often that BranchClan's soft spoken medicine cat apprentice became a chattering stream. Reedkit herself wondered what her name would be. Burstfall had named her for her pelt and limber legs, but it could be something unrelated to that in the end. Like . . . Reedwind!

Mottledpaw purred alongside her. "Yes, I suppose. We'll just have to wait and see!" The gray apprentice looked down at the various leaves and berries, all now in neat little piles. "I think we're done with that. Now I just need to make proper traveling herb bundles out of them. Thanks for your help, Reedkit!"

"You're welcome!" Reedkit said, leaping to her feet. "I'll see you later!" The long-legged brown kit ran from the den, up and out into the fresh, leaf-fall air. Leaves of brown and gold scattered before her and then were whisked up by a brisk evening breeze. It wouldn't be long before Mottledpaw and Redsplash left for the Moon Falls. In the clearing, Sunkit and Sapkit were tussling on the ground, and Reedkit spurred herself forward.

"Gotcha!" she squeaked, slamming into Sapkit. The orange she-cat flailed in mock terror as Reedkit pinned her down, triumphant.

The breeze suddenly strengthened, and leaves whirled about in the air. For a moment, all three of the kits were still as they watched the beautiful leaf-fall display. Reedkit was suddenly reminded of how, weeks before, they'd wrestled as their group walked down into the valley. The moment now was so similar, yet so different, and Reedkit didn't feel the same as she did that fateful day. They were home now.


	8. Moon: Icy Death

**A Very Big Author's Note: And here I am again! Track was canceled today for some reason so I have a truckload of time to write this. Yay! Two chapters in the span of a week. Kinda pitiful, but that's me. Slow to come up with what I'm writing. I'm also pretty hard on myself; I already want to change the first several chapters a little, especially the prologue. Prophecies are just too cliche' (how do I even get the accent on that "e"?) in any case. Also, I now want to put a little teaser in there about how BranchClan left the valley, because that's mostly what the story is about now. People just get the wrong idea from the prologue, according to my view chart (half of the people read the prologue, and then quit the story). What do you guys think? I'm going to check the rules to make sure it isn't illegal or anything, but I want to know your opinion before I do anything.**

**Do you think I'm moving too slowly? I know that's far from common to have gotten, like, eight chapters into the story and still have the charries (short for characters) be kits. XD However, if I were to make them apprentices, I'd be rushing headlong into the action, because leaf-bare is where fit really hits the shan, if you know what I mean. I think the minimum from here would be to make the kits that were four moons old in the beginning, apprentices, in the next chapter (the apprentice ceremony is going to be from Wolfkit's POV for REASONS).**

**On another note, I'm sorry that I haven't updated ****Beyond Oblivion****, but I have trouble finding inspiration. There's too many possibilities. I mostly just want to write a backstory to the whole thing, centered around Graywhisper, Silvermoon, and Leafcolor, of course.**

**Okay, rant done, time for answering reviews.**

**Thanks, Heretica, for reviewing! Yay, another person had the patience to read this. As far as relevance, the last chapter wasn't really, but I did want to have Reedkit get to know Mottledpaw (also for REASONS). Other than that, it doesn't have too much to do with the plot. I can't say this one will be too relevant, either. Just developing a feel for Moonkit's character is all. **

**I will now shut up and write the chapter.**

**Chapter 7: Icy Death**

_A fine frost had settled over the island, dusting it in cool, _white bits of ice. Moonkit sniffed the delicate flakes, and flinched at their sharp touch. She licked the liquid remnants from her nose, and looked up to see Fernkit and Wavekit reacting similarly as they experimented with the strange little things.

"Leaf-bare might come sooner than we had expected," Pouncestar murmured to Rosefur, mother to Flowerkit, Flarekit, and Lightkit. The three kits were much larger, with only a half-moon or so until they became apprentices. Moonkit thought enviously of how she would be stuck alone in the nursery with Fernkit and Wavekit for a whole moon without them. The two were becoming almost unbearable as they grew older.

Fernkit looked up from one withered reed, wrinkling his nose in confusion. "Pouncestar, why are the plants dying?"

"It's a part of leaf-fall, Fernkit," Pouncestar mewed, squinting against the glare that the frost projected across the clearing. Around them, warriors moved sluggishly, and wearily, as if the cold was sapping them of their strength.

_A fairly accurate statement, _Moonkit thought with a shiver. She wanted nothing more than to go back into the nursery and bury herself in Silverfall's fur. Moonkit brightened at the thought of her adoptive mother, glad that she had taken her in, rather than Pouncestar. Moonkit would rather claw her eyes out then be indebted to Fernkit and Wavekit.

"Attention!" Fishclaw yowled. Moonkit looked up with ears perked; was Fishclaw going to call a meeting? "Shellfur, Wingbreeze, Voleear, and Marigoldpaw will go on a hunting patrol once Waspeye, Hawkbeak, and Scaleleg get back from the dawn patrol."

"Oh, why couldn't Silverfall lend a paw? We don't have enough warriors as it is, and we can't afford to let anyone laze around for no reason," Shellfur complained.

"Don't talk about my mother that way!" Willowsong hissed, hair bristling. Silverfall looked on at the exchange from the nursery den, her expression unreadable.

"Don't deny it's true," Shellfur hissed, flexing her claws. "She had her time to grieve, and that rogue kit is the only reason she hasn't fully returned to warrior duties!" Moonkit blinked in confusion from where she stood, feeling like the frost that surrounded her was creeping into her heart. _Rogue kit?_

"How could you be so ignorant?" Willowsong snarled incredulously, crouching down to leap on the other she-cat.

"Enough!" Fishclaw snarled, leaping between the two quarreling she-cats. "We do _not _speak of our fellow clanmates that way, Shellfur. We should show a little sympathy for her loss."

Shellfur glared fiercely at the black tom, before finally breaking her stare to look down at her paws. "I'm sorry, Silverfall. I don't know what I was thinking."

Silverfall sighed, and shook her head, her eyes clouded with sorrow. "No, Shellfur, you made a good point. I've taken too long to get over . . . what happened. I - I'll join the next patrol."

Moonkit slinked away, shame burning into her pelt. This was, in a way, all her fault. Not all of IslandClan welcomed her, especially Fernkit and Wavekit. She never wanted Silverfall to suffer because of that. The small, gray kit crept into the reeds, not letting anyone notice her absence. Brittle bits of ice snapped and broke beneath her paws as Moonkit wound through the brush. The air was preceded by a thin wreath of mist, preventing Moonkit from seeing too far beyond her. As she snuck along, a thin layer of ice gave way to water, icy cold against Moonkit's skin.

Moonkit hissed reflexively, retracting her paw. She realized to her shock that a portion of the lake was frozen. A chill spread across Moonkit's spine as she looked at the glittering ice. She felt . . . _uneasy_, like she couldn't stand to think of the water trapped in its icy prison. Another thought came to Moonkit, cold and ominous; would IslandClan starve without any fish? She had to ask her mother!

Spinning on her heels, Moonkit leapt away from the island shore to go find Silverfall. She paused, remembering Silverfall wouldn't be there for her anymore. She had to attend to her duties. Moonkit sighed, her purpose forgotten, and broken. She slumped, not feeling like making the short trip back through the reeds back to the nursery. Fernkit and Wavekit would just ridicule her, and Moonkit wouldn't feel any less cold.

_It isn't fair! _Moonkit thought angrily, taking her rage out on the slender reed stalks before her. The gray kit's claws tore into the shriveled plants, and she let her bitterness take over and control her movements. Moonkit's eyes narrowed, and she looked angrily upon the reeds, as if it were their fault she was mistreated.

This one, the crooked one with a brittle stalk, was Wavekit. _Snap! _It never stood a chance.

A pale green one, with leaves still attached, was Fernkit. _Crack! _It fell pitifully between Moonkit's jaws.

And now . . . Moonkit whirled around, her eyes falling on a tiny, insignificant bunch of sharp shelling leaves, still alive. _Shellfur_. Moonkit crept forward, allowing herself a few moments of sweet anticipation before she tore into the miserable pile of-

_Crunch! _Moonkit froze, and the wind changed. The familiar scent of Fernkit and Wavekit washed over her, and Moonkit growled involuntarily. She felt so angry, so enraged, and wanted nothing more than to make those two suffer for her pain. It took all her willpower not to tear into them as the unwitting kits romped her way.

"I wonder why Silverfall even likes her, anyway," Wavekit squeaked, her dark, glossy pelt bobbing into view. Moonkit stood patiently, waiting for when the ignorant pair noticed her.

"I wonder why _any _of-" Fernkit's voice was cut off, eyes wide with shock and dismay when he noticed Moonkit standing before him and his littermate, listening to every word with a hateful glare. Wavekit growled, narrowing her eyes to slits. Her tail lashed irritably, and the dark she-cat lowered herself into a crouch.

"Hiding again, Pathetickit?" Wavekit drawled with a sickening smirk. Moonkit's claws slid in and out as she tried desperately not to wipe the grin off of the unbearable she-cat's face. Copying Wavekit, Moonkit settled into a crouch, ears flat against her skull. Her lip curled in a premature snarl, and Moonkit's eyes flashed dangerously.

"Ashamed of your lazy excuse for a mother?" Fernkit said, goading Moonkit on.

"Actually, she's probably more ashamed of you!" Wavekit yowled, standing up with a triumphant gleam in her eyes.

"Just like Pouncestar's ashamed of _you_," Moonkit snarled, grinning devilishly when she saw that she'd struck a nerve in the two kits. It was time they got a taste of their own medicine. "Come on, cowards, are you afraid of _Pathetic_kit?"

Fernkit leapt with an enraged screech, slamming into Moonkit with great force. The breath left Moonkit body, and she was flung out onto the thin ice of the lake. She curled up, wincing from the pain of the blow and gasping for breath. However, Fernkit was not done with her yet. The angry tom raked unsheathed claws across Moonkit's ear, drawing blood. Moonkit snarled, and kicked out at Fernkit, throwing him out further onto the ice.

"Fernkit!" Wavekit cried, smacking into Moonkit with a hunger for vengeance. Moonkit tumbled, and let out a yowl of dismay as an ominous crack was heard beneath her, and she plunged into the icy water. Still falling end over end, Moonkit sank deeper into the dark water, unable to know which way was up or down. She thought she could faintly see the outline of Fernkit and Wavekit against the ice, but Moonkit was too disoriented to know for sure.

Finally, Moonkit's lungs were aching too much for her to stand, and Moonkit randomly kicked out her back legs, hoping to move closer to the surface. Her feet met the silty bottom of the lake, and sprang away. Squinting, Moonkit was able to see the hole where sunlight entered the water, and swam towards it with the practiced ease of an IslandClan cat. When she felt her lungs might burst, Moonkit surfaced, and delicious air fed her starved body.

Gasping, Moonkit flung herself onto the ice, only to have it crack more. After several more attempts, Moonkit successfully pulled her bedraggled body out of the water. Fernkit and Wavekit were nowhere to be seen, and Moonkit wondered if they'd fallen through the ice, too. She dismissed the notion as soon as she though of it; she'd seen Fernkit and Wavekit standing above her as she'd vied for the surface. Maybe they had run off.

"Moonkit!" Turning at the sound of her name, Moonkit saw Silverfall, along with Willowsong, Voleear, and Fishclaw. Willowsong ran up to her and licked Moonkit's soaked fur anxiously. "What happened? Fernkit and Wavekit came running into camp screeching their heads off about how you were trapped under the ice."

Moonkit looked down at her paws, wondering why Fernkit and Wavekit would bother. Didn't they want her dead? She suddenly felt ashamed for stooping as low as them. Now she really was a rogue kit. "Fernkit, Wavekit, and I got into a fight. I fell through the ice."

Silverfall's eyes glinted with relief and then anger. "You could've drowned! From now on you're staying where I can see you."

"I thought you have to be a warrior though, like Shellfur said," Moonkit pointed out bitterly, looking up.

"Where _Pouncestar and Rosefur _can see you," Silverfall said, exasperated. "You knew what I meant." The gray she-cat looked at her adoptive daughter with resignation. "Come on, let's get you warm."

Moonkit's head drooped again, and she obediently trudged after Silverfall and the rest of the group. A part of her protested that it was Fernkit's and Wavekit's fault, but there was also a part of her that felt only shame. Not everything was supposed to be about her.

As soon as the patrol reached camp, Fishclaw leapt up onto the tree at the center of the island, landing gracefully on a low hanging branch. "I have something I need to draw to the attention of the rest of the clan," the black-furred deputy yowled.

The ferns parted off to the side to reveal Waspeye, Hawkbeak, and Scaleleg, who had returned from refreshing the borders. Waspeye triumphantly displayed a vole she had hanging by the tail, before depositing it on the fresh-kill pile. The patrol joined the rest of the cats gathered beneath the tree, ears angled toward Fishclaw attentively. Moonkit watched apprehensively as the deputy prepared himself to continue, wondering if he was going to talk about her.

"Moonkit almost drowned today when she fell through the ice not too long ago." Shocked cries rose into the air, and Fishclaw had to raise his tail for silence. "We haven't been watching our kits, the hope and legacy of the clan, because we've believed that they are safe on the island. It is blatantly obvious that this is not true anymore, so I must enforce a new rule. Kits will no longer be allowed to go beyond the camp. If they do not follow this rule, punishment will be exacted." Fishclaw narrowed his gaze at the cluster of kits, his eyes lingering on Moonkit. "This meeting is now dismissed." The tom sprang down from the branch, and the warriors dispersed.

Moonkit watched sadly as Shellfur, Voleear, Marigoldpaw, Wingbreeze, and Silverfall disappeared into the rushes, off to go hunt for the clan. She wondered how much prey they would catch out in this cold weather; Moonkit certainly would not be out and about if she were a mouse!

Out of the corner of her eye, Moonkit saw Fernkit glaring at her, and sighed inwardly, thoughts dispelled. She watched with more than a touch of exasperation as the angry tom approached her. "Nice going," Fernkit hissed. "Now we get to be squished up in the camp all day with _you." _The tom turned tail, and padded away.

"What is your problem?" Moonkit asked in bewilderment. Fernkit paused, and looked back at her with similar confusion. "Why do you _hate _me so much?"

The black tom snorted. "Isn't it obvious, _Pathetic_kit?"

"Not really," Moonkit drawled, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"It was a rhetorical question," Fernkit muttered, miffed.

"Ooh, big words. I didn't know you were capable of that," Moonkit exclaimed in mock surprise.

"See, that's exactly why I don't like you," Fernkit spat.

"Moonkit!" Willowsong ran up, and began to lick her adoptive sister. "You're still soaked! Come on, you're going to catch a cold." The gray warrior herded Moonkit into the nursery, and Moonkit could almost feel Fernkit's gaze burning into her back as they clambered in.

"Do you think she's sick?" That was Silverfall, her green eyes wide with concern. Moonkit blinked up blearily at her, and looked away, feeling another bout of coughing coming on. She pushed through, exhausted and wanting nothing more than to sleep. Why did her mother have to go and get Goldenfur, anyway? She was fine.

The elderly medicine cat scrutinized Moonkit deeply, frowning. The gray kit coughed again, and the golden she-cat shook her head wearily. "Whitecough." There was a cry of dismay from Silverfall, but Goldenfur silenced her with a twitch of her tail. "It's not bad now, and we still have plenty of herbs. She'll be fine, Silverfall. Don't you worry."

Moonkit nodded at the medicine cat's words, and yawned. She was fine. Totally. Her vision was so fuzzy though. Moonkit squinted up at the two conversing cats, trying to stay awake, but she felt so . . . tired. She was barely able to make out Goldenfur's words as the golden she-cat continued to speak. "We need to move her to the medicine cat den, though; don't want the other kits to get sick, do we?"

Silverfall picked up Moonkit by the scruff, the kit doing little to resist. As they got out of the den, Moonkit could see why she was so tired; it was the middle of the night! A thickening moon shone down on the three she-cats as they made their way to the medicine den; a hollow at the base of the willow tree that was at the center of camp. Silverfall set Moonkit down in a freshly made bed of moss, and Moonkit curled up gladly. It was so much less stuffy and noisy than the nursery here.

Moonkit was faintly aware of Watercloud's presence as he joined the other cats. "She must've caught when she went for a swim earlier today," the tom remarked smartly. Goldenfur cuffed him over the ear, the last time Moonkit saw before she fell asleep again.

Wingbreeze entered the den with fish clenched between his teeth. He dropped it in front of Moonkit and smiled affectionately. "Here, Minnowtail caught you a trout, one of the last of the season, and I brought it over here to share with you." He sat down beside the sickly kit, and purred assuringly when she coughed. "Are you doing okay?"

Moonkit nodded weakly, and took a bit of the trout. Fish was her favorite kind of prey, and it saddened her to know that she wouldn't be seeing much of it from now on. "Leaf-fall kind of sucks," she said aloud.

Wingbreeze _mrrowed _with laughter. "I'll tell you what, leaf-bare isn't much better."

Moonkit groaned at his remark. "I don't think I can't stand much more of this," she complained.

Wingbreeze touched his tail to her flank in a comforting manner. "Don't worry, it's only about three moons. Then new-leaf comes and everything is great again!"

"I haven't lived much more than three moons," Moonkit pointed out, tail tip twitching with amusement despite the derisiveness in her tone.

"Life goes by faster than you might think," Wingbreeze exclaimed. "I miss being a kit like you. So carefree and happy, without a responsibility in the world."

"I can't wait to be an apprentice, though," Moonkit sighed, pausing with a sharp cough. "And to be rid of this annoying cold," she added.

"Sometimes it's good to slow down, Moonkit," Wingbreeze said. He rose to his feet, and nodded. "I have to go on a patrol soon, so I'll leave you to it." The tom turned on foot and left the den with a flick of his gray tail.

Moonkit sighed unhappily as she watched him go, not liking the prospect of spending more time in the reeking medicine den all by herself. She coughed violently, and curled into herself.

Watercloud's grayish-blue head peeked out from deeper in the hollow, where he'd been doing whatever it was medicine cats did with their herbs. Moonkit regarded him cooly, wondering what kind of awfully tasting thing the medicine cat would make her eat next. The tom had some leaves clenched in his jaws, and padded over to Moonkit.

"Eat these," Watercloud said, the herbs dropping from his mouth. Moonkit sniffed them, and was surprised at how delectable they smelled. "What are they?" she asked curiously.

"Catmint." Watercloud shoved them towards Moonkit impatiently. "They are a highly sought after plant among medicine cats, keeping down outbreaks of green cough during leaf-bare. IslandClan is lucky to have a patch of their own."

Moonkit chewed the bundle of leaves thoughtfully, and looked up at Watercloud in confusion. "Don't I have whitecough, though?"

"That can change easily," the tom mewed, turning back to the other end of the den once he was satisfied that Moonkit had eaten the catmint. "Leaf-bare is almost upon us, and your condition can worsen as the cold does. Thankfully, we have plenty of catmint."

Moonkit wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Leaf-bare sounds really bad the more I hear about it."

"Some say it holds a certain beauty," Watercloud meowed thoughtfully. "Most just see the pain and suffering it brings. This might be an even worse leaf-bare with those BranchClan rogues bumbling in."

"What do you mean?" Moonkit said worriedly, ears angled towards Watercloud attentively.

"What I mean is that there could be bloodshed. BranchClan hasn't earned their place here, and will probably die before they do. After all, MountainClan and ForestClan will need the extra prey."

Moonkit felt sick to her stomach, and instantly regretted eating the trout. Cats would die over a couple extra mice or squirrels? No, she couldn't dwell on the fact, or she might accidentally send her trout back up. "But . . . why?"

Watercloud sighed, and turned to look at her. "You're only a kit now, but one day, Moonkit, you'll understand why we must fight to bring peace." He looked at her sternly. "Enough talk for now. Go back to sleep."

_But that doesn't make any sense! _Moonkit protested mentally, curling back into her nest. She couldn't sleep with all the thoughts in her head now, though, so she rose from her nest wearily. Quietly, she snuck over to the den entrance to look out at the camp. Over by the nursery, Fernkit and Wavekit were playing a game of "Battle" with Flowerkit, Lightkit, and Flarekit. A shiver went down Moonkit's spine as Lightkit, or rather, Lightfury, pinned "Fernstrike" down. "This is FlareClan territory now!" she exclaimed triumphantly.

It was almost like the kits were enacting their futures, Moonkit noticed worriedly. Just how many cats would die this leaf-bare?

**So, the above Author's Note was written several days ago, and I couldn't find time to work on this in between. However, the chapter's done now, and it's also the longest in the story so far. I also rewrote it a bit, for I felt Moonkit was being too mature the first time I wrote it. She might still be, I don't know. Tell me what you think.**


	9. Wolf: Secrets Revealed

**Author's Note-Edited: Hey, guys.**

**You may have noticed I didn't update in awhile. You may also have noticed that the-fanfic-critics wrote a reply accusing me of stealing his/her sister's story, and threatened to report that. Turns out, that sister is Rose of the Gorge (that's how it's spelt, right?), a fellow of ours on this site. Some of you may have read her stories; Prophecy of Stars, and The First Summer for SnowClan (you can correct me if I'm wrong). Incidentally, this story (or rather, set of stories) involves cats living in the midst of a perpetual winter, which is where the-fanfic-critics may have gotten the idea I had committed plagiarism. **

**I want to ask you guys whether you think the-fanfic-critics is right or not. Honestly, most of the anger I've felt towards ****his/her statement has dissipated by now, and I'm going to ignore it. **

**I think I will follow HakubaRya's advice, and change the previous chapter so as to make Moonkit, Fernkit, and Wavekit less mature. **

**This next chapter might be messed up too, just let me know.**

**Chapter 8: Secrets Revealed**

_**W**olfkit shivered, but it wasn't from the cold. The sun was high in _the sky, and its albeit pale rays still warmed her. It was an unusually warm day, in fact, after a string of cold, snow-heavy blizzards that had pounced on the cats of the valley without warning. No, her shiver stemmed from fear. Fear of the unknown.

Everytime Wolfkit closed her eyes, she felt the fire of pain in her neck, slick, invisible blood pumping out erratically with every terrified heart. And most horribly, the dizzying blackness of oblivion. _Who knew a mouse could feel so much, _Wolfkit thought wryly, muscles tense as another blow of remembered death washed over her.

The kit had tried to hide her thoughts, but the others could plainly smell the fear and anxiety on Wolfkit's pelt. Her littermates strayed away from her, casting fretful glances back at her every now and then as they played amongst themselves. Bravescreech regarded her daughter with deep concern, always shadowing her peculiar kit. After all, what kit didn't want to play "Battle"?

There was a heavy thud of paw steps, and Wolfkit looked up to see Poolflight, his mouth full of herbs. He squinted at the gray she-cat deeply, and Wolfkit shuffled nervously. Why was he staring at her?

"Poolflight?" Bravescreech mewed, surprise evident in her tone.

The medicine cat nodded, and put down his bundle of leaves. "I wanted to inspect Wolfkit. Her behavior is not normal, and I want to see if I can cure her . . . seizures."

Wolfkit looked down at her paws mournfully. The incident with the mouse had not been the only instance. Seemingly at random, out of the blue, visions would plague her with pain and fear. Other cats claimed that she flopped to the ground at these times and started twitching madly, screaming and thrashing. Wolfkit hadn't told anyone that she didn't have a condition, and was actually seeing things out of other creature's minds, for fear of being told she was crazy. Not that it seemed to matter; everyone was already avoiding her all the time now.

Bravescreech's eyes widened, and she nodded gravely. "It's been getting worse." Her mother was true. Wolfkit had been had experienced what she was calling "body attacks" to herself every few days now. She had no control over it.

Poolflight shoved some of the leaves towards Wolfkit, who wrinkled her nose at their sharp, tangy scent. "Eat," the medicine cat commanded sternly.

Wolfkit glared at him stubbornly, and exclaimed, "I'm not sick! I can explain!"

"Mm, really?" Poolflight stepped closer and looked at Wolfkit intensely. The she-kit felt greatly unsettled under the blue-grey tom's gaze and looked down at her paws, where the herbs lay waiting. Hesitantly, she clenched her jaws around the awful-tasting leaves, and started to chew. Poolflight looked at her with grudging approval, and nodded to Bravescreech. "That should help her get it under control."

The tom padded away, and Wolfkit wondered hopefully if they really would help her, even if she wasn't having actual seizures. She shook her head briskly after a moment, though. They were just stupid leaves, what good could they do?

"All cats gather under the Meeting Willow for a clan meeting!" Wolfkit turned, swallowing in surprise as she saw the elegant-furred leader of MarshClan; Lilystar. The dark she-cat looked down at the gathering warriors with a bemused gaze, a trace of a smile on her face.

Over by the fresh-kill pile, Swampkit and Murkykit fell away from each other and ran to the base of the tree, squeaking excitedly. In that moment, Wolfkit knew the matter of the meeting, and twitched her tail in anticipation. A moon ago, Muddypaw and Smokepaw had been made apprentices, and now it was their turn! Wolfkit bound away from her mother, visions and all forgotten with her discovery.

Lilystar looked down at her and her litter mates with that same little smile, and Wolfkit couldn't help but purr as she sat down beside Swampkit. Finally, she wasn't going to be a useless kit anymore. She shot a triumphant and defiant look over at Thornfrost, who sat near the front of the small crowd that was MarshClan. The tom looked at her with disdain, but Wolfkit couldn't care, not in that moment.

Atop her branch, Lilystar purred, and sprang down lightly so she was standing in front of Murkykit, who regarded her with wide eyes. The black she-cat spared her a glance before looking out to the rest of the Clan. "Leaf-bare has struck unusually fast this season, and MarshClan still has yet to fully recover from the harsh sickness that had swept across the clans last time snow covered the valley. However, today we will celebrate the strengthening of our ranks as three cats become six moons old and begin apprenticeship.

"Murkykit, step forward." The little she-cat trembled with nervousness and anticipation, stepping forward confidently. "From this day forward, until you complete your training and receive your warrior name, you will be known as Murkypaw!" The newly named apprentice beamed with happiness. Lilystar flicked her tail to a dark grey she=cat sitting nearby. "Duskwhisker, you are young, but Darkpelt has mentored you well, and I expect that you will mentor Murkypaw with the wisdom she passed onto you."

Murkypaw practically flew as she leapt forward to touch noses with her mentor, energy singing through her pelt. Duskwhisker looked over-joyed as she bent forward.

Lilystar turned to Wolfkit next, and she quaked with fear, ears flat against her skull in a moment of doubt. What if Lilystar held her back because of her seizures? What if she had to stay a kit forever?

"Look out, Wolfkit might be having another seizure," a familiar voice hissed. Wolfkit flexed her claws and resisted the urge to rearrange Thornfrost's face. In front of her, Lilystar narrowed her eyes at Thornfrost, and flicked her tail menacingly.

"Wolf_paw_, is just fine," Lilystar said evenly. "Please refrain from making outbursts while I'm talking. I'm seriously reconsidering making you Wolfpaw's mentor."

_What? _Wolfpaw spun around, and locked eyes with Thornfrost, horrified. His expression mirrored hers, eyes wide in dismay and shock.

"Are you mad?" Bravescreech hissed, eyes narrowed. "He can't mentor someone. Some of us have doubts he should even be a warrior." Several cats concurred with Wolfpaw's mother, and Lilystar raised her tail for silence.

"Extra moons of hunting and fighting training won't change Thornfrost's attitude," Lilystar mewed. "I want to see if having responsibilities will."

_Doesn't she know he hates me? _Wolfpaw thought, spinning back to face her. Lilystar's next words were firm. "Thornfrost w_ill _mentor Wolfpaw. If he fails to meet my standards, he will be punished accordingly, and Wolfpaw will have a new mentor. Until then, that is my decision."

_I can't wait until that happens, _Wolfpaw thought glumly as she trudged over to Thornfrost. She didn't even bother touching his nose, and sat so there was plenty of space between them. She watched him out of the corner of her eye with great unease, but didn't miss out on Swamppaw being named and getting Streamglow as a mentor. They all had young cats as their trainers, Wolfpaw noticed. What was Lilystar thinking?

* * *

_What indeed? _Wolfpaw thought irritably as yet another mouse slipped out of her claws. She didn't understand what she was doing wrong, but Thornfrost was such a negligent mentor. It had only been a few days, and they were already at each other's necks, so to speak. They had to be the worst mentor and apprentice ever.

Of course, Swamppaw and Murkypaw were moving along just fine. They'd already toured the territory, caught some prey, and even went on a patrol. All Wolfpaw and Thornfrost accomplished was another fight.

_If looks could kill, _Wolfpaw thought darkly as she glared fiercely at Thornfrost up ahead, where he was stalking a vole. She briefly considered scaring away the prey out of spite, but the clan needed every scrap of food, now that leaf-bare was here. She turned away, and scented the air hopefully. Wolfpaw knew in was a wasted effort, though, when she kept falling over in the middle of her crouch. She sighed and walked towards camp, figuring Lilystar would have come to her senses by now.

Suddenly, Wolfpaw felt herself falling to the ground. Abruptly, she was trapped in the body of a vole, thin and hungry, as it tried to search for a bit of food in the midst of leaf-fall. There was a snap, and Wolfpaw felt a sickening feeling as the vole froze. And there he was. Thornfrost, eyes narrowed and growling low. Terror grabbed ahold of Wolfpaw as she realized that she was trapped inside the mind of the self-same vole that Thornfrost was stalking!

Desperate, Wolfpaw thrashed against the metaphorical walls of her prison, terrified of a repeat of the first she had experienced an "attack". She could tolerate being a rogue in battle as he had his leg snapped in a dark alley, or a kit trying desperately to cling to life as greencough wracked its body, but Wolfpaw didn't want to die again!

She, or the vole—rather—ran in a hopeless attempt to escape Thornfrost's claws. They pierced the tiny creature's body, and it squeaked it pain with Wolfpaw, falling beneath Thornfrost's paws. Quick as a flash, the tom locked his jaws around the vole, and snapped his neck. The scream as death fell over the vole and Wolfpaw ripped through the apprentice's real body, and all of a sudden, she was thrashing on the ground, very much a cat.

"Wolfpaw!" He was standing over her, vole abandoned, alarm in his eyes and voice. Wolfpaw wasn't able to calm down enough to assure him of her health, the only thing she could think about was the fatal and horrific pain she'd felt. She screamed again and curled in a fetal position, shaking terribly. The tom continued to yell, trying to reach the gray she-cat's shattered mind, but it was in vain.

Finally, she lay out on the forest floor, panting and exhausted, too weak to convulse anymore. Poolflight stood over her, having arrived awhile ago. "Eat!" Poolflight yowled for what must have been the hundredth time. "I swear you'll be fine if you just eat these."

"No, I won't!" Wolfpaw hissed weakly, shying away from the proffered herbs. "It's not what you think it is!"

"Then what is it!" Poolflight hissed back, patience long since abandoned.

"I don't know!" Wolfpaw buried her face in the mud, not wanting to see either Thornfrost or the insistent medicine cat. Finding that she couldn't breathe, Wolfpaw drew away, and glared at Poolflight. "I get these—these _visions_, okay?"

Poolflight looked intrigued. "Visions, you say?"

Wolfpaw nodded. "I—I was the vole Thornfrost was stalking. I could feel its pain." Wolfkit shuddered at the memory, trying to shake off the feeling of claws sliding into her and taking her life.

Thornfrost looked utterly bewildered, but something flashed in Poolflight's eyes. "Don't tell anyone about this, Wolfkit, you understand? That goes for you as well, Thornfrost. No one must know of the return of Power."

"Wait, what?" Wolfpaw looked at Poolflight in confusion. "What 'power'?"

Poolflight shook his head solemnly. "I've been sworn to secrecy. All you must know is that you must keep the visions under control. If you don't, the valley may be in grave danger." Without another word, the tom ran back to camp.

Thornfrost and Wolfpaw shared a bewildered glance, and then the older tom abruptly shook his head, as if to shake water off his pelt. "Alright . . . let's just pretend that never happened, okay?"

Wolfpaw nodded, rising to her feet. "Yeah, you're not going to tell anyone about it, right?"

Thornfrost rolled his eyes. "Why would I ever tell anyone you're special in any way?"

Wolfpaw grinned. "Right, I forgot we're supposed to hate each other."

"Yeah, so let's get back to doing that." Thornfrost turned, and walked in the direction of camp, where Poolflight disappeared. Wolfpaw hesitated to follow, feeling a chill spread down her spine. Whatever the Power was, it couldn't be good, as Wolfpaw felt sick to think that some of it was inside her, trying to destroy her and her Clan from the inside-out.

**I know, it's a really short chapter, but I didn't really know where to go beyond the ceremony. Anyway, that's all there is right now. Expect an update from me this weekend!**


	10. Lightning: There Are Others

**Wow, I'm sorry for disappearing for like, two months. I all of a sudden had writer's block, and then decided to wait to continue the story until inspiration came again. I have to say it, I enjoy this chapter nine better than the one I wrote when I was still struggling to decide what I was going to have happen. I apologize for any distress I may have caused during my inexplicable disappearance. I assure you, though, contradictory to last chapter, I will _never _give up on this story. Unless I die.**

**Chapter Nine: There Are Others**

_A light snowfall was beginning to dust _the ForestClan camp. Little sprinkles of white was softly enveloped by Lightningpaw's ginger fur, giving him a paler appearance. Rainpaw and Hazelpaw were pressed together next to him as they all huddled for warmth. The three of them were all sharing some fresh-kill; a couple of scrawny sparrows. Prey was quickly becoming scarce, a fact which was painfully obvious in the way the skin of cats all around were beginning to hang on their scraggly frames. The going was tough, even tougher he was told after BranchClan appeared.

Hazelpaw shifted beside him, and her eyes narrowed to slits. She tilted her head towards him, her body tense. "When do you think Firepaw and Graypaw will be coming back?"

"Soon, hopefully," Lightingpaw murmured quietly. The tom let out a long sigh and put his paws to his head. Ever since leaf-bare had really settled in, everything had become so much harder to do. Every fight in the training clearing drained him, every hunt proved practically fruitless, and now, sickness was starting to become prevalent. Mosspaw and Ripplefall, Graypaw's mentor, were both experiencing symptoms of whitecough, and were being treated by Sparkleaf and Whitepaw, who had decided to become a medicine cat apprentice. Lightningpaw wondered how big the clan's stock of herbs was now that there was no living stock to replenish it.

A rustle of sleeping vegetation, stark and leafless, occurred near the entrance to the camp. Bushpelt stumbled through, a single, starved mouse in his jaws. Applepaw followed, a tiny little bird that Lightningpaw couldn't identify in his mouth. Firepaw came next, his mood considerably brighter than the cats that had come before him. Lightingpaw could see why; Firepaw had a thin rabbit firmly clamped between his teeth! Thistlefang, Ashear, and Graypaw came up behind him with several mice between them, but Lightningpaw only had eyes for Firepaw.

The brightly colored tom deposited his kill on the almost vacant fresh-kill pile, and bound eagerly over to Lightningpaw. "Look!" Firepaw indicated the scrawny rabbit once more with his tail, his eyes shining. "I caught my first rabbit!"

"I can see that," Hazelpaw said dryly. Lightningpaw smiled a little bit at her comment, and Rainpaw purred. Firepaw only narrowed his eyes, his mood completely changed, and whisked off. The trio looked after him in surprise as he stalked away.

There was a pattering of feet, and Lightningpaw looked over his shoulder to see Graypaw, an exasperated expression on her face. "He's been acting like that since we left. He just has to be the best! What's up with him, bees in his brain?"

Hazelpaw just shook her head and lowered it to her paws. "I don't know, we used to joke around when we were kits about being the greatest warriors ever, but you know, that's kit-stuff. Only, he never really grew out of it."

"I want to be a good warrior, too," Rainpaw protested. "Does that mean I need to stay in the nursery for another moon?"

All the apprentices purred at the gray tom's joke, and Graypaw nudged her littermate playfully. "Get going already, fur ball! Mistbreeze is waiting!"

Rainpaw shook his head and grinned. "Nice try, but I think I enjoy cleaning out the elder's bedding and gathering moss too much to laze around in the nursery!"

Another round of purring greeted his words, and Hazelpaw curled into herself, unable to stop for breath. "Stop . . . you're killing me!"

"Speaking of lazing around!" The apprentices stood stock still, and looked round to see Sparkleaf glowering down at them in disapproval. Whitepaw hung around behind her, snaking her neck to look at the warriors to-be with wide eyes. Lightningpaw straightened himself suddenly, fearful of the medicine cat's anger. It probably looked like the apprentices were doing nothing bumbling around day in and day out.

The elderly tortoiseshell grumbled at them, muttering about how things had been when she was a young and pretty she-cat, and how lazy apprentices were practically unheard of. She flicked her tail and straightened, her amber gaze steadily trained on them. "Tell you what, since you all don't have anything better to do, I'll take you with me to see if there is any herbs to be salvaged in this cold."

* * *

Lightningpaw trudged absentmindedly behind Graypaw, Hazelpaw, Rainpaw, Whitepaw, and Sparkleaf as they all scoured ForestClan's territory for any remaining life in its vegetation. The tom nosed a limp plant that seemed a shade green, but it was apparent that it was far past its usefulness. Lightningpaw sighed; this was pointless! Everything was either dead or dying. _But hopefully not us, _Lightingpaw noted as an afterthought.

Suddenly, Whitepaw paused, and turned her head sharply. "Catmint!" she purred, bounding forward. Lightningpaw looked round to see what she had found, and spied a healthy green bundle of leaves that smelt incredibly delicious. The apprentice started forward, eager to have something good salvaged out of this hunt when the wind shifted.

The icy breeze bit into Lightningpaw's pelt, but the scent it carried was really what made his blood run cold. "Whitepaw, wait!" He bound forward, desperate to stop Whitepaw when a flash of fur indicated he was too late.

A dark she-cat, quickly followed by several grey cats of varying shades except for one brown apprentice, led the charge from MarshClan's swampy vegetation, surrounding Whitepaw. She looked fiercely down at the tiny white apprentice, who squeaked and scrambled back over the border. "What is this apprentice doing in our territory?" The she-cat snarled, directing her question at Sparkleaf.

The medicine cat narrowed her eyes at the black she-cat, undaunted. "Darkpelt," she began smoothly. "We were simply looking to salvage what plants we can before the frost sets in. If you don't mind, it would do us a great deal of good for you to share some of that catmint."

Darkpelt snarled. "Sorry, Sparkleaf, but this is MarshClan's, and we can use every last leaf! Besides, don't you have some in your supply?"

"Nothing lasts forever," Sparkleaf replied smoothly. "Not even leaf-bare. So don't act like you can't afford to give us a bundle of those leaves."

One dark gray tom, his muzzle and ears splashed with lighter gray, growled in displeasure. "It's not our fault if you decided to let BranchClan have all of your herbs."

"Thornfrost!" Darkpelt snapped, but the tom remained unapologetic. The small silvery-gray she-cat at his side smirked and flicked her feathery tail. Lightningpaw glared at her in response, prompting her attention. The tom was surprised by the depth her cold blue eyes seemed to hold, a shadow of pain behind that disk of ice. He blinked, and she looked away.

Sparkleaf purred, an awful grating sound that did not hold any warmth. To Lightningpaw, it sounded almost forced. "Tell me, Thornfrost, if ForestClan is a bunch of weak-hearted cowards, than what is MarshClan to allow you an apprentice and have your head swell beyond its already enlarged state?"

"Sparkleaf, please!" Lightningpaw turned to see Whitepaw, who was trembling. He blinked and wondered what this encounter had to be like from her point of view, for the kind-hearted apprentice couldn't stand seeing others fighting "over nothing". In this case, Lightningpaw agreed with her; a wound or a death over this scraggly, dying bit of catmint was definitely not worth it.

Sparkleaf looked over at her apprentice, and something in her hard gaze softened. She looked back at MarshClan, and glared at them. "Have it be known that it is against the code to deny me help as a medicine cat. Your grievances with ForestClan aren't to be extended to me."

"If you wish catmint, visit Poolflight, not steal forcibly," a gray tabby tom said smoothly. He flicked a dismissal to Sparkleaf, who snorted and turned away.

"Come," she said darkly. "We are going back to camp, apprentices."

"Why didn't the MarshClan patrol let us have some of the catmint?" Graypaw asked. Sparkleaf looked at the speckled gray she-cat solemnly, her eyes clouded with memory.

"Often, Graypaw, leaf-bare is a time of darkness and hostility. The colder it gets, the colder our hearts do." With that, the little patrol walked on in silence the rest of the way to the camp, Sparkleaf's words hanging over their heads.

* * *

"Pssst, Lightningpaw!" The orange tabby started, rolling over on his moss nest to see Firepaw's sharp green eyes glowing in the darkness. He squinted, mentally beating back his sleepiness. Despite his efforts, he yawned and blinked sleepily.

"What is it, Firepaw?" He crouched, wondering what his littermate needed to say that was so urgent he needed to wake him up at moonhigh. The darker orange tabby that was Firepaw shifted forward on light feet, and Lightningpaw could almost detect fear on his brother's pelt. Had he a dream?

"I need to tell you something," Firepaw whispered solemnly, eyes wide.

"Well, what is it?" Lightningpaw growled. He didn't want him to beat around the bush, especially when the hairs on the back of Lightningpaw's neck were beginning to rise.

"Okay, so I had the weirdest dream a couple nights ago," Firepaw began. Lightningpaw perked up; right around then was when Firepaw started acting strange! Maybe his littermate was going to tell him why! "In my dream, it was cold, only I could really _feel _it. As I was walking through the snow, in a clearing that looked _exactly _like the training clearing, I was able to feel the snow, wet and cold against me. It was almost too real to be a dream!"

Firepaw's eyes were burning brightly, the green a radiant fire animating his story. Lightningpaw gazed upon it steadily, his sense of danger growing. "But," Firepaw exclaimed, continuing. "When I tried to imagine warmth like I usually do in this weather, the snow began to melt around me! I was so surprised because up until then I thought I might be awake. Only, cats can't just melt the snow with their mind, so I knew then I had to be dreaming."

Suddenly, the fiery cat's voice grew low, hush with urgency. "Then, where the snow melted, I saw _blood_. I recognized the spot where Hazelpaw and I had been sparring when I accidentally attacked, but I'd only nicked her, nothing got on the ground, so this confused me."

Lightningpaw was beginning to quiver, feeling extremely uncomfortable standing quietly next to Firepaw. He felt an uncontrollable desire to _run_, run away before his littermate could continue his story.

"Then," Firepaw paused for dramatic effect, letting his words pool into Lightningpaw's ears like blood around a dying warrior. Lightningpaw's eyes widened in shock when he saw glint of something in Firepaw's eye, a hint of red among green. It disappeared as quickly as it came, but didn't take Lightningpaw's unease with it. "A voice began to speak out of nowhere. 'Congratulations, apprentice, you got first blood. Now, let's see what wounds I can deal in return.'"

Firepaw's words hung as heavy as Sparkleaf's had, and Lightningpaw shivered once more. "I won't admit this to anyone, Lightningpaw, but I'm _scared_. And I'm scared for you, too."

"Why?" Lightningpaw squeaked.

"Because there were _others_, there. Only for a second, and pale, asleep, cats that I couldn't really recognize, except for one. That one was you."

* * *

Lightningpaw stumbled along without direction or care, letting the other cats guide them as they all streamed towards the Gathering. Firepaw's words were all that he could think about since the night before, and now, the other apprentices were beginning to wonder what was wrong with him, too. Hazelpaw kept looking at him sadly, and he knew she must think it was her fault. Rainpaw still joked about it, but was becoming despondent when Hazelpaw refused to cheer up. Lightningpaw didn't feel like comforting his littermate or friend though, not when Firepaw had probably delivered some sort of prophecy or something.

He was jolted back into the present when the patrol suddenly dipped down into the hollow where the Great Stump resided. Lightningpaw looked at its charred remains, and wondered at the might of the force for which he had been named. Certainly, it could destroy even the mightiest of life. Such a thought, however, did not comfort Lightningpaw in the least. Lightning struck fear in cat's hearts, and did not command admiration.

Firepaw brushed past him suddenly, and Lightningpaw hastily followed him. He could sense that his brother was up to something, and intended to see what. He felt a little confused at the purposeful way the apprentice headed for the BranchClan cats, rather than someone from their own clan. The tom stooped suddenly, perching on one of the long gnarled roots that extended to partially separate some of the clans. Lightningpaw paused beside him, scanning the sea of faces and pelts, colors and patterns, to identify what Firepaw searched for.

"Follow me," Firepaw whispered, flicking his tail in command. The lighter orange tom was a bit perturbed with the way his littermate ordered him, but obeyed. The two passed into the crowd of BranchClan cats and the few from other clans who mingled with them. Firepaw kept searching, and the paused suddenly. Lightningpaw followed his gaze to see a familiar brown she-cat. He almost didn't remember her, but the face of the proud, fierce kit she had been was hard to shake off. It was Reedkit, or rather, Reedpaw now.

Something told Lightningpaw as Firepaw sauntered forward ahead of him that Firepaw knew Reedpaw a little more beyond that, or at least, had a better reason for seeking her out. The long-legged she-cat turned, staring at them in confusion. "What are you doing over here?"

"We just wanted talk with you, about something important," Firepaw replied without hesitation. He lowered his voice, and bent his head towards her. He said something inaudible to Lightningpaw, and he watched curiously as Reedpaw jerked her head back in surprise. Firepaw shifted away then, pushing back Lightningpaw to go in the direction of ForestClan again.

"What did you say to her?" Lightningpaw asked as he tried to catch up.

"At moon high tomorrow, we are going to sneak out of camp and come back here." Firepaw flicked an ear in annoyance, and clambered over the separating root.

"Why? That's against the code!" Lightningpaw protested loudly.

Firepaw spun suddenly, facing Lightningpaw fiercely. "Keep your voice down!" He hissed in a harsh whisper. "We can't let anyone know about this!"

Lightningpaw followed after him, unsure. "Why talk to her anyway? What does this have to do with her?"

"I don't know, all I know is that she was one of them!" Firepaw hissed and glared at Lightningpaw over his shoulder. "Stop talking to me, you're going to get everyone's attention!"

"Fine!" Lightningpaw retorted, watching his brother disappear into the crowd, without him. He slumped his shoulders and sighed, blinking slowly. What was wrong with his brother? First, he acted arrogant and reclusive, then scared and concerned, and now, angry and snappish! Something was telling Lightningpaw that maybe Firepaw wasn't telling the whole truth, and wouldn't be, either.

"What's wrong with him?" A cold, feminine voice exclaimed suddenly. Lightningpaw started, and looked up to see the same small gray she-cat that he had the day before with Sparkleaf. He blinked in surprise, and stared at her in confusion.

He tried to discern a reply, but ended up following Reedpaw's lead with "What are you doing here?"

The gray she-cat whisked her feathery tail, silent. Lightningpaw wondered if she was trying to come up with a reply too, but he mostly got the feeling she was scouring his soul. She relaxed her cold, blue stare suddenly, and smirked in a lop-sided way. "I came over here to find you, I suppose. To mingle and catch with everything that happened since yesterday, I guess."

Despite her cool outer shell, she seemed hesitant, almost shy. Lightningpaw was glad to know that she might be a little nervous, too. "Is this your first gathering? I've seen you before."

"Yes," the gray apprentice admitted. "I became Wolfpaw only recently, but I honestly wonder if I'm any wiser than I was on day one. But that's what it's like when I have _Thornfrost _for a mentor, I suppose."

"Is he really that bad?" Lightningpaw asked in surprise.

"Yeah, but I think he would be better with anyone other than me," Wolfpaw admitted. "He's hated me ever since I was a kit for some reason." The gray she-cat seemed to ponder this sentence, trying to search for this obscure motivation for her mentor's dislike. "But, we have been getting more . . . accustomed to each other."

Lightningpaw noted Wolfpaw's pause, sensing a similarity in that to the demeanor Firepaw carried himself with. _She's hiding something, _he realized. _But what?_

"MountainClan is here!" Maplestar suddenly yowled from the base of the Great Stump. "The Gathering will now begin!"

Lightningpaw cursed his luck, wishing he could have gotten time to learn more about Wolfpaw when the pelts of the MountainClan patrol streamed into view, Cloudstar at the forefront. His deputy and medicine cat; Stonepelt and Dapplecry; trailed behind him before Dapplecry broke off to join the other medicine cats. Lightningpaw's gaze followed her to where Sparkleaf and Whitepaw sat. Whitepaw smiled upon noticing Lightningpaw's gaze, and waved with her tail. The tom waved back and then looked over to the roots of the Great Stump once more.

"_I _will go first, for once," Cloudstar announced firmly, stepping up in front of Maplestar. He settled and cleared his throat, ignoring the glares from some cats in the crowd. "As you all know, Hawkkit and Falconkit were born about six moons ago. It is unfortunate that only Hawkpaw was destined to continue on and become an apprentice, but nevertheless, we celebrate his new station tonight!

"Hawkpaw! Hawkpaw! Hawkpaw!" Lightningpaw looked over in the crowd to discern the new apprentice, and finally spied him sitting next to the deputy. His eyes seemed to shine with sorrow at the mention of his dead littermate, killed by a rogue when Lightningpaw was still very young, but he also glowed with happiness. Lightningpaw purred at the sight, glad to have Firepaw and Hazelpaw still alive and well.

"As Hawkpaw was welcomed into apprenticeship, we welcomed a new warrior into our ranks! Emberpaw was exceptional as an apprentice, and she will be amazing as a warrior! Congratulations, Emberstep!"

"Emberstep! Emberstep! Emberstep!"

Cloudstar dipped his head, and sidled back behind Maplestar. The cream tom pushed forward undaunted, ignoring the way Cloudstar had shoved up in front of him. "The going is good in ForestClan," the amber-eyed leader began. "StarClan has been kind to us, and we have two new warriors; Applewave, and Birchcall!"

"Applewave! Birchcall! Applewave! Birchcall!" Lightningpaw glanced at the ginger tom and white she-cat, and grinned. He had not known them too well when they were still apprentices, being closer to Rainpaw, Graypaw, and Whitepaw, but he was glad for them all the same.

"That is all for now," Maplestar meowed, stepping back.

Lilystar stalked forward to take his place, the she-cat's eyes glittering with their usual light-hearted humor. "Much has been happening in MarshClan," she purred. "First, we welcome two young but determined warriors; Sleekwillow and Ivybreeze!"

"Sleekwillow! Ivybreeze! Sleekwillow! Ivybreeze!" The clans cheered once more. Wolfpaw cheered with them, her clear voice audible to Lightningpaw. He glanced over at her, and then further on to where her mentor, Thornfrost, stood next to the proud new warriors. Indeed, many had advanced this month, all of varying ages and experience. Lightningpaw was told apprentices could become warriors as young as twelve moons to as old as sixteen moons on a regular basis. An odd case had been Beechleaf, Lilystar's own son.

"Second," Lilystar continued as the customary cheer subsided. "We have three new apprentices; Murkypaw, Wolfpaw, and Swamppaw!"

"Murkypaw! Wolfpaw! Swamppaw! Murkypaw! Wolfpaw! Swamppaw!" Lightningpaw grinned at Wolfpaw, who glanced over at him nervously. He dipped his head in concord; he understood how it felt to have so many eyes trained on him.

"Until next time," Lilystar said finally, stepping back. Fishclaw took his place, leaving Highstar to be last this time. The BranchClan leader shot the dark-furred deputy of IslandClan a testy look, as if aware of this fact. Fishclaw ignored Highstar, taking up the mantle at the forefront of the stump's base. "Next moon, Pouncestar will able to resume leadership duties that I have been taking up in her stead. So this will be the last time I am announcing for her, and there is not much to say. All the same, that little announcement is as important as any, for tonight we welcome Moonpaw's presence as an apprentice!"

"Moonpaw! Moonpaw! Moonpaw!" Lightningpaw looked round to try and find the new apprentice, but the stump and the crowd blocked his view, for IslandClan sat farthest from ForestClan.

"Now, I believe it is your turn, Highstar!" Fishclaw exclaimed politely, stepping out of the huge brown tabby tom's way. The BranchClan leader narrowed his eyes but said nothing in reply as he padded forward. "Finchcatcher and Honeyflight swell BranchClan's ranks; the first to become warriors since we returned to our home!"

"Finchcatcher! Honeyflight! Finchcatcher! Honeyflight!" Most of the cries were from BranchClan and MarshClan, for the three clans that shared borders with BranchClan; MountainClan, ForestClan, and IslandClan; were rather quiet at the reminder of BranchClan's return to their "home". Lightningpaw cheered for the new warriors, though, and tried to look for Reedpaw. The long-legged she-cat looked distracted, her gaze trained on someone else in ForestClan. Even before Lightningpaw spied him, he knew it was Firepaw. What explained the tom's new obsession with Reedpaw? _What explains your obsession with Wolfpaw?_ A voice whispered in Lightningpaw's mind.

"The Gathering is now over!" Highstar roared. The leaders bound down to send their cats home, and Lightningpaw looked to see Wolfpaw heading back over to MarshClan. He bound forward, possessed by a sudden urge to say something to her before he left. She turned when she realized he was following her, and looked puzzled.

"Meet me at the Great Stump at moon high tomorrow," he breathed in her ear. Lightningpaw only had a moment to take in the sight of her shock and confusion when suddenly a sea of cats flooded between them. The familiar gray pelt of Thornfrost and then two apprentices Lightningpaw realized must be her littermates enveloped her, hiding her away.

Lightningpaw shook his head and then turned towards the rest of the ForestClan patrol. Someone pressed up against him, and he realized in was Graypaw. She was looking at him in concern. "Are you alright Lightningpaw? You are making your littermate sick with worry; you've been acting nearly as strange as Firepaw!" Lightningpaw felt a pang of guilt when he remembered how distraught Hazelpaw had been.

"I'm fine now, but Firepaw's been having this dream . . ." Lightningpaw would feel guilty later for effectively telling two cats about Firepaw's secret in one night, but he couldn't help it. Something drew him towards Wolfpaw, and something made him trust Graypaw, more than he did Hazelpaw. Whatever it was, Lightningpaw would be grateful towards it in the end. One thing was for sure though, this first moon of true leaf-bare was going to be very eventful.

**So, we finally have some of my characters meeting up with each other, and some reveals. The ball has just begun rolling, and now, I doubt I'll be doing any extreme time-skips as that ball begins to go 'round faster. We are reaching the part when we actually get some action. Sorry to those of you who like your action right away. I'll make up for it by posting a chapter in Turn Away, which is currently going at a fast, action-filled pace. Sorta. Kinda. Whatever. Until next time, which will hopefully, be soon!**


	11. Reed: Strange Gaze

**No notes today! Woot!**

**Chapter 10: Strange Gaze**

_"Reed! Hey, Reed!" The small black tom called _out to Reedpaw, and she turned, eyes glimmering. The branch bent beneath her as she shifted her weight, but the long-legged apprentice knew it could hold her weight. She searched for Littlepaw through the huge tree's foliage, her eyes narrowed. Then, she spotted him, poised on a much higher branch. The black tom's eyes gleamed in the growing darkness, and he angled his ears toward the neighboring tree.

"Watch what I can do!" The older tom gathered his weight beneath him, and then sprung, flying through the air to land on the end of one of the other's trees branches. It bent gravely beneath his weight but the resilient tom dug his claws in and scrambled up it. He looked down at Reedpaw triumphantly, his grin wide. "Betcha that you can't do that!"

"Two moons haven't taught me nothing!" Reedpaw retorted, squaring her shoulders as she faced the tree he was in. Her long legs curled up beneath as she readied herself for the leap, and she focused all her energy on the one branch extended out to her own. Then, with a great burst of energy, she pushed out her hind legs and reached forwards. She flew from the branch, lifting her body so that she only touched air, and then landed squarely against the branch. Its tip bent gravely underneath her, but Reedpaw's training had prepared her. Like dozens of times before, the brown apprentice hooked her dark paws into the sides of the branch and hoisted herself upwards. Her hind legs, which had been dangling freely, found purchase, gripping the ends tightly. As she secured her grip there, she moved her forepaws forwards and pulled the whole of her body into a comfortable place near the base of the branch. She looked up at Littlepaw happily, and licked her belly, which was sore from impact.

"Alright, that's enough practice for now!" A voice mewed. A stirring in the branches above caused Reedpaw to look up as her mentor, Shortnose, landed gracefully next to Littlepaw on another branch. The dark tabby looked at both of them approvingly. "You've done well, but it's getting dark. Time we started heading back."

"I agree." Oakfrost alighted in the tree, and Reedpaw grinned at her father, who was mentor to Littlepaw. He smiled at her proudly, and nodded to Littlepaw. "Come, let's practice jumping down without injuring ourselves."

The four cats steadily made their way towards the ground, hopping from branch to branch until they got close enough to leap to the ground. Reedpaw felt a tingle in her paws as she made contact with the snow, and shifted her weight in what was now a slushy mess. Littlepaw quickly appeared beside her and the two ran to catch up with their mentors. It quickly escalated into a competition to see who could reach camp first. Littlepaw won, much to Reedpaw's surprise. What with her long legs, she'd always thought she was much faster than anyone else her age.

Sappaw and Sunpaw had ran to greet the two after they appeared. "How was tree-training?" Sappaw asked, eager to know what the other two had learned.

"Good," Reedpaw said with a yawn. "I finally perfected the jump between two trees!" She added happily.

"And I beat Reedpaw in a race back to camp!" Smallpaw exclaimed.

"That sounds like fun!" Sunpaw mewed. "Sappaw, Creampaw and I went hunting!"

"I caught a bird in midair!" Sappaw boasted.

Reedpaw purred and started making her way towards the apprentice den. Sunpaw and Littlepaw continued to engage in an eager conversation about who was better at catching birds as they walked, bickering good-naturedly. Reedpaw crawled into the earthy den, looking up to see Creampaw who looked half-asleep. The white she-cat shot her a look akin to irritation. Reedpaw shrank in her pelt and quickly wandered over to her nest on the other side of the den.

Sappaw, Sunpaw, and Littlepaw all appeared in a line. Creampaw shot them a look and their chatter abruptly stopped. Sappaw curled up in her nest next to Reedpaw and leaned over to whisper in her ear, "Well, someone looks cranky."

Reedpaw purred at her sister, and licked her ear. "Sleep well."

* * *

The brown apprentice had tried her best to stay awake, drifting in and out of a light sleep. The forest grew even colder at night, and Reedpaw shivered in her brown pelt. Finally, the darkness was complete, and she stirred. Slowly, she crawled out from the nest and scrabbled through the den's entrance.

The night air hit her like a cold blast and Reedpaw's ears went back. A sharp wind ruffled her fur, slicing into her skin as it weaved around and further into the trees. The murmur of the two cats on guard caused her to tense. She looked over and saw Stickclaw and Browneye sitting by the camp's edge, engaged in conversation. Reedpaw reminded herself that if they saw her they would just think she was headed to the dirtplace to relieve herself.

Silently, she crept around one of the trees that marked the edges of the camp and squeezed her lithe body under the vegetation placed as a defense against attackers. Reedpaw felt a leap in her heart when she finally came free, and looked around quickly. No one stirred or cried out, so the brown apprentice shot forward, running off into the woods in the direction of the Great Stump.

She had only the night and the clear air for company, her ears listening to the wind moan softly, and the crunch of compact snow beneath her paws. It was a long, hard run, and Reedpaw was short of breath when the slope finally evened out into a clearing. Reedpaw paused to look around at the freshly fallen snow, and admired the pristine look of the clearing. She could faintly detect the scents of many cats that still lingered from the night before.

Finally, Reedpaw ran forward to the Stump, looking back to see how her paw steps stood out against the snow. A prickle of worry stabbed at her heart; what if someone was to see her tracks later on? _I have more things to worry about right now, _Reedpaw reminded herself, and she hopped onto one of the huge roots. Excitement flared in her belly when she realized that she would get to stand where only leaders had before, and she leapt forward.

Turning, Reedpaw looked out over the clearing, and tried to imagine dozens of cats looking back at her. She shivered nervously at the idea, and shook her head. She didn't want to be a leader.

Suddenly, her delicate ears picked up the sound of crunching snow, and the brown apprentice tensed. Then, a familiar orange tabby appeared, his dark paws stark against the snow he walked on. Reedpaw crouched warily, remembering how Firepaw had inexplicably asked her to come to the Great Stump. What was he going to say to her?

A lighter tabby appeared behind Firepaw, and Reedpaw felt the tiniest bit of fear slide into her. It occurred to her that she might have walked straight into a trap. Both brothers were older and stronger, built for battle. Reedpaw knew all too well how much MountainClan and ForestClan despised her own clan, and she wondered if she had been chosen to make an example of.

She sought out Firepaw's eyes and saw that they held a spark of anger and determination, his brow creased. Reedpaw sank into her haunches and glared at them, ready for a fight. "Why did you want to meet me here?"

"I need to tell you something," Firepaw said firmly. Lightningpaw paused behind him, and looked to the side. Reedpaw followed the light ginger tom's gaze, wondering what he seemed so anxious about. _I'm the one that has to be worried._

"Talk away," Reedpaw said to Firepaw, sitting back. She tried to look at ease, but her fear might have already seeped into the air.

"We're in danger," Firepaw stated simply. Reedpaw blinked in surprise, and was shocked to detect a fear-scent on Firepaw. "Something is watching us, I know this because it visited me in a dream. In my dream, I saw the forms of other cats sleeping. Lightningpaw and you were two of them."

"Why do you think it wasn't just a dream?" Reedpaw mewed, still tense. She felt icy cold.

The tom shivered, took a deep breath, and closed his eyes. Reedpaw breathed in sharply as she saw Firepaw in a way she hadn't before. In a new light, a terrible, tainted one that made him look like a fearful predator. She noticed his claws were unsheathed now and gripped the snow hard. The orange tabby seemed to quiver, and Lightningpaw cried out suddenly in shock and fear. Reedpaw gasped when she saw that the tip of Firepaw's ear wasn't there anymore, and blood oozed from the mysterious wound. The snow melted and hissed under his feet, until Firepaw was standing in a patch of dead, dry grass. The blood trailed down his ear, and a single drop slipped free and met the ground.

Firepaw gasped and his eyes flew open. Reedpaw caught a glimpse of red in his eyes before it disappeared. "It-it attacked me," he whispered. "Just like it had promised."

"You sound surprised." Reedpaw whirled at the new voice, half expecting to see Firepaw's mysterious stalker, but instead she saw a gray she-cat pull away from the trees. "I saw everything," she explained.

"Wolfpaw!" Lightningpaw meowed in a pleasantly surprised tone. Firepaw, still tense from his effort to prove his to Reedpaw, turned to glare at him. "Why is she here?"

"You weren't expecting me?" Wolfpaw sounded surprised as she approached. Then, to herself, she muttered, "Are the body-attacks really just a natural affliction?"

"Body-attacks?" It was Lightningpaw who spoke.

Wolfpaw's gaze grew guarded. "I have strange power like Firepaw, power that tortures me and is beyond my control."

Firepaw looked confused. "How did Lightningpaw figure out you were one of us?"

Lightningpaw shifted his feet uncomfortably. "I felt a sense in me that drew me to her." His eyes widened in clarity, and he looked at Reedpaw. "I share the same sense for you, and Firepaw!"

"Well, that explains it," Reedpaw mewed, nervous. If she shared the same connection to two cats who were tortured by some unknown assailant, did that mean she was going to be attacked too?

"My attacks are not the same as Firepaw's though," Wolfpaw exclaimed. "When it happens to me, I . . . leave my body and enter another. All against my will." She shivered as her eyes clouded over with memory. "I always enter bodies that are suffering, or begin to suffer, and I share their pain. I know . . . what it's like to die."

Reedpaw's voice broke as she spoke next. "That sounds _awful._" Her heart began to thump painfully at her chest, but the long-legged she-cat lifted her chin. She would remain stalwart.

"It is," Wolfpaw said, lifting eyes that reflected the new strength in Reedpaw. "But I think it's possible to fight back."

"What do you mean?" Firepaw mewed, an expression of surprise crossing his features.

Wolfpaw frowned to herself. "We can gain control of our power, if we try. I think if we train ourselves frequently we will be able to resist."

"We're already in training to become warriors," Lightningpaw pointed out.

"Not in that way," Wolfpaw snapped. "_Mentally_. The attacks are more mental than physical. If it can't control our minds it won't be able to hurt us."

"How do you know for sure?" Firepaw said doubtfully.

"I don't," Wolfpaw murmured, almost to herself. "But it's worth a try to focus on being mentally prepared." The gray she-cat padded over to Lightningpaw, and bowed her head as she stood opposite him. "I don't know why this is happening to me, or how, but my clan's medicine cat seems to know something. He looks at me with fear in his eyes and in his scent. He said that if I don't learn to control it, I could put the whole valley in jeopardy."

A tense silence fell over the four young apprentices, and Reedpaw trembled softly, her short brown fur fluffed up. Her siblings as kits had pretended to have great power, but it had been good and strong. Reedpaw had used to think that having powers would give a cat a great advantage, and ensure them a destiny as great heroes. But what if what Wolfpaw said was true, they were destined to be the villains of this age. Suddenly Reedpaw felt very, very old.

"I need to know more," Firepaw meowed, raising his head. A fire burned in those bright, green eyes of his, and Reedpaw felt herself admiring his determination. The brown she-cat let her fur down and prompted the orange tabby expectantly. He sat down, his striped tail curling about his paws. "If we are going to keep everything from falling apart, we have to know our enemy. Like my mentor, Thistlefang said, a great warrior knows the strengths and weaknesses of those they face in battle."

"I suggest," Reedpaw said, raising her voice. The three turned her gaze on her, and she blinked. Lightningpaw's amber eyes looked complacent, but Firepaw looked determined. It was Wolfpaw who made her the most uncertain, for the gray she-cat's blue eyes looked almost haughty, but reserved. "I suggest that we meet together every so few days or something."

"How about every quarter moon," Wolfpaw said softly, raising her long-haired tail.

Reedpaw nodded, and shifted her paws. "We do what we can to understand this . . . power, why we have it, and what's so dangerous about it."

"Let's make a pact," Lightningpaw exclaimed, stepping forward. He crouched and gnawed at his paw. Hissing, he pulled away to reveal a gash now, and squeezing it, he held the paw over the patch Firepaw had made on the ground. Reedpaw watched morbidly as it fell against the other bit of blood, extending the area of impact. Reedpaw looked over at her paw and reluctantly clamped down on it. Pain shot through the limb, and she flinched. Hovering the paw over the two droplets on the ground, she looked to see a single drop fall away and mix in with the rest.

Wolfpaw watched all of this quietly. Reedpaw tensed and wondered what the gray she-cat was thinking. Slowly, the she-cat lifted her paw but bit down on the back of it. "Don't want to have trouble walking tomorrow," she explained in a low tone as she punctured halfway up. Twisting it upside-down, her blood was the last to meet the rest.

"From now on," Lightningpaw began, his young voice trembling. The light orange tabby moved forward till he flanked Wolfpaw and Firepaw. The gray she-cat and orange tom pressed against Reedpaw too, and a ring formed. "We are a band. We will be a clan of clans, a group that comes together to protect each other from a force greater than rivalries and boundaries. Even in battle, we will be united. Tonight we make this promise, and will keep it until we draw our last breath. I, Lightningpaw, solemnly swear to abide by this pact."

"And I, Firepaw, do swear."

"As do I," Reedpaw mewed softly, her eyes on the pool of blood in the center of the circle.

"And I, Wolfpaw," the gray she-cat said quietly, completing the oath.

A moment of silence in the air before Lightningpaw finally shifted and looked at the other three cats. "Do you think that was good enough?"

"Yes," Wolfpaw said, nodding. "I had no idea what to expect when you asked me to come here, but I acknowledge now that we're going to need each other in the leaf-bare to come."

"Why?" Reedpaw said softly. "Why do we have to face an enemy that we know next to nothing about? I wasn't even in the valley until recently."

Firepaw flashed her a look. "Maybe that's why we have powers. We're cursed—StarClan doesn't want BranchClan here."

Reedpaw's lip curled. "This was our home first!"

"Then why did you leave?" Firepaw retorted.

"I don't know," Reedpaw said, a slow realization dawning on her. "I had no idea why . . . not until now."

* * *

Reedpaw was running through the forest. Cool, white sunlight dappled the trees and the snow around Reedpaw glimmered slightly. The long-legged she-cat paused to scent the air, and tensed when she smelt a mouse not very far away. The apprentice stalked forward in search, when she finally spied a pale gray mouse scrabbling for food near the base of an old oak tree.

Her muscles moved smoothly beneath her as she sank into the ground in a crouch. She leveled her tail, and moved her body slowly towards the unsuspecting prey.

Suddenly, there was a rush of dark fur, and Reedpaw scrabbled backwards as a night-black she-cat pounced onto the mouse gracefully. The dark stranger arced her neck and lowered her head to pick up the mouse. Faintly, Reedpaw was aware that she should run back to camp or alert someone nearby, but the she-cat was frozen in fear.

The mysterious she-cat lifted her head once she'd secured the silvery mouse in her jaws, and turned to regard Reedpaw with a smooth, elegant motion. Reedpaw gasped when she saw the she-cat's eyes were _purple_, a deep violet hue that seemed to hold a wealth of knowledge. The she-cat blinked back at her, and dropped the mouse softly, dipping her head to the ground to deposit it in the white snow. "Funny," she said, her voice holding a deep resonance. "I do not remember summoning you, apprentice."

"A-apprentice?" Reedpaw stuttered, unable to comprehend what the strange black she-cat was saying.

"Of course," the she-cat purred softly, shaking her head softly. "I have not even introduced myself, yet. I believe two of my kin have already started working with their chosen cats."

Reedpaw looked at her in confusion, feeling her heart thump violently inside her. Then, her eyes widened, and she let out a strangled cry of shock as she turned in the snow, trying to get away from the she-cat. Two of her _kin_ were responsible for Wolfpaw and Firepaw's suffering!

The she-cat quickly moved ahead of Reedpaw, blocking her escape. "Do not worry, Reed-legged one, I am not as bloodthirsty as my companions who stalk your friends."

"That isn't very comforting!" Reedpaw snarled, turning away to go in another direction. The she-cat flashed in front of her, and suddenly pain blossomed in the side of Reedpaw's head, and the she-cat went sprawling in the snow. She looked up to see the she-cat with her strange violet eyes blazing. Reedpaw shrank back, pushing away at the snow.

"Do not bother trying to escape," the she-cat snarled, putting a paw on Reedpaw's chest. "I can hold you in this world as long as I please!"

"B-but why?" Reedpaw said frantically. As she said it, the she-cat was aware that her question was very vague, but somehow, she knew the purple-eyed she-cat would understand.

The she-cat frowned at her. "Do you think that you would be the only one who has suffered in this valley? A long time ago, before the crumbling of the four clans, and before your pitiful excuse for a clan fled and banded together, a great wrong was made, and this valley was doomed to darkness forever."

"F-four clans?" Reedpaw dared to ask. "There are other clans?"

"Ever since the four were destroyed, the idea of a "clan" has spread far and wide," the purple-eyed she-cat explained. "By now, it has all but faded except for the ones found in this valley. A pity, for staying here ensures the destruction of them and their code." The dark-furred cat chuckled bitterly. "Your clan should have never returned, Reed-legged-one."

Reedpaw felt limp, the black she-cat's paw on her chest and the snow at her back pressing against, cold and unforgiving. Her clan's home, the place that they'd spoke fondly of ever since they'd returned, held a deadly secret that could destroy them. What an awful place to call theirs.

There was a faint sound of snow crunching underfoot, and Reedpaw twisted to see two other black cats; one with shockingly icy blue orbs, the other with blazing red. Reedpaw swallowed hard, wondering why the black cats had such strange-looking eyes. She'd never even heard of cats with purple or red eyes . . . except for the bit of red Firepaw had after he was attacked.

The purple-eyed she-cat tensed on top of Reedpaw. "Go now," she hissed. "They would not be pleased to see you here so soon." The snow seemed to envelop Reedpaw all of a sudden, and the forest and earth came together into an indiscernible mass of blurred shapes. Soon, all Reedpaw could see was darkness.

* * *

The brown apprentice woke up with a gasp, precious, cold air filling her lungs. She looked around wildly, but when she saw only the walls of her den and Sappaw stirring beside her, she relaxed. Her ginger and white sister yawned and arched her back in a stretch, shuddering into consciousness. The slight she-cat blinked and looked about her. "Did the others get up already?"

"I guess so," Reedpaw mumbled. She ached all over, tired from her run back to camp after the meeting by the Great Stump, and felt anxious after her rather disturbing dream. Sappaw continued to stretch before crawling out of the den, her tail tickling Reedpaw's nose on her way out. The brown apprentice lay by herself for a couple more moments before getting into a crouch and slinking out.

The sun peeked through the trees, a weak and whitish-yellow ray of light. Reedpaw squinted against the harsh glare of the snow that hadn't been scuffed away in the camp, and slowly padded over to the fresh-kill pile. Mottledleaf sat beside it, and leaned over to take a sparrow in her jaws. "Morning," the medicine cat apprentice said pleasantly as Reedpaw leaned over to pick up a thrush.

"Morning," Reedpaw said softly, pausing before fully extending her neck to grab the sickly-looking bird. Mottledleaf's eyes sparkled with concern as Reedpaw looked up again.

"Are you alright, Reedpaw? You look awfully tired, and your voice sounds hoarse," she mewed.

"I . . . couldn't sleep last night," Reedpaw lied as she set down the thrush to talk, hesitating before she said anything. She remembered Wolfpaw saying that her medicine cat knew something about the curse. Should she tell Mottledleaf the truth?

Mottledleaf frowned, and swished her tail. "I think you should eat your food and then come visit me in the medicine den."

"Alright," Reedpaw said with resignation, laying down on the ground to eat the thrush where it lay. She watched Mottledleaf pad over to her den before swallowing the first bite, and, realizing how hungry she was, quickly consumed the rest. She hurried towards where she saw Mottledleaf disappear and ducked into the den.

Mottledleaf was checking the stores, which, as Reedpaw looked over her shoulder, was looking rather low. The dappled she-cat looked up to see Reedpaw watching and smiled grimly. "The frost has set in by now and we can resupply our herbs until new-leaf comes. We will have to make do with what we have if a sickness spreads."

Reedpaw, having learned a couple things about the herbs in her time as a kit, could appreciate how dire the situation might be. She slumped into a nest used for patients, and looked up at Mottledleaf blearily. "Well, let's hope that doesn't happen."

"Let's," Mottledleaf concurred, striding over to examine Reedpaw. "Now, _let's _have a look at you."

There was a shift of paws and low grumbling sound in the back of the den, and Reedpaw dared to look as Redsplash woke up. The ginger tom narrowed his eyes at Mottledleaf. "What's Reedpaw doing over here? She better not be doing your chores for you!"

Mottledleaf shook her head, purring along with Reedpaw. There was a catch in Reedpaw's throat as she attempted to _mrrow _with laughter, so she ended up making a spluttering cough. She blinked, her eyes blurring and feeling watery. Mottledleaf tensed and looked back at her. "No, Redsplash, I thought she looked unwell, so I took her over to have a look. And after looking, it seems like you have whtiecough, Reedpaw!"

_I must have got it last night, _Reedpaw realized, and she groaned. Mottledleaf stroked her assuringly with her tail. "Don't worry, we will be able to get you back to help before any semblance of greencough starts to show. For now, just lie there and rest. I have to go talk to your mentor."

_Rest! _Reedpaw's entire being shivered with pleasure at the idea she might get some sleep. She tried to ignore the way her nose was beginning to clog up, and the irritating tickle in her throat as she curled up and closed her eyes. Reedpaw wondered if she wouldn't be able to meet the other three because of her cold, but decided to worry about that later. By the time Mottledleaf returned, Reedpaw had fallen into an easy sleep.


	12. Moon: First Blood, First Death

**You guys are probably used to me being a very lousy updater. One of my role-playing sites has gone under, so I should be able to dedicate more time to this. Watching Warriors projects on Youtube to keep my muse up. :P Due to the interest, Beyond Oblivion will be updated next.**

**Chapter 11: First Blood, First Death**

_The lake was now almost completely frozen. _Moonpaw knew there would no longer be any worry about any cats falling in like she did several sevendays ago. Miraculously, the gray she-cat's cold had gone down, and now she was an apprentice. There was no excitement thrumming under her pelt this moment, though, as she gazed across the unyielding ice. The lake was huge, a great body of water. But now, she couldn't help if there was _more_. Her head tilted to find the river, who held a sheet of ice over itself as well. For all she knew, it could extend endlessly. How long had she floated before being found, the full moon a spotlight for her rescuer?

"You ready to go on patrol, Moonpaw?" The gray apprentice turned to see Waspeye, her mentor's tabby fur faintly resembling the insect for which she was named for. The tabby she-cat's whiskers twitched and she looked at Moonpaw expectantly. The gray and white she-cat ducked her head, nodding. She snatched a last glance at the lake, the burning sky as the sun stole the night, and then followed her mentor.

Her short fur was slogged with gritty snow, and dead vegetation by the time they straggled back into the clearing. Or least, Moonpaw straggled. The much bigger she-cat was able and didn't get dragged down by sheets of snow half her size. The apprentice shook out her fur and crawled over to the fresh-kill pile. A ginger tom that Moonpaw quickly identified as Flarepaw was chatting to Wavekit. Besides them, the pile of food was meager.

". . .was wondering if you could show me some moves?" Wavekit was saying, her ears angled towards Flarepaw eagerly. The tom, who'd been about to secure his jaw around a scrawny vole, paused abruptly. Moonpaw silently moved around them, her ears flicking back to catch Flarepaw's response.

"It's not like you have long until you are an apprentice, yourself."

"Exactly! It would be preparation! Come on, please?" Moonpaw flicked an ear in surprise; Wavekit never tried to kiss up to others. The kit was too proud for that.

"Hey, Moonpaw, where are you going?" The gray she-cat turned her head, tilting her blaze so it was parallel to Flarepaw's gaze.

"I'm going on the dawn patrol, Waspeye told me," Moonpaw murmured, flicking her eyes up at Flarepaw.

The tom's golden orbs sparked, and he pricked his ears. "Hey! Shellfur said we were going to be on the dawn patrol!"

"Oh, fine." Wavekit's eyes shone with disappointment. "Maybe you can give me some tips when you get back?" The black she-cat looked up at Flarepaw hopefully.

"Maybe," the ginger and white tom finally conceded. He looked over at Moonpaw, then. "So, when do we go?"

Moonpaw blinked. "Um, I suppose whenever Fishclaw says it's time."

Flarepaw's golden eyes flicked up to the leader's den immediately. Moonpaw jerked her head around, and it was then that the black tom stalked out of his den. He glanced over at Wavekit, smiling at his daughter, and then strode quickly over to Shellfur. The she-cat was lounging in a patch of sunlight, and Moonpaw's whiskers twitched distastefully. She would remember how the white she-cat had called her a rogue for a long time.

Shellfur hefted herself to her feet, and looked at the small gathering of cats who'd gotten up. Most were still sleeping, but early-risers and those who'd been assigned the dawn patrol today were up. "I need Flarepaw, Rosefur, Waspeye, and Moonpaw to come with me."

The gray apprentice dipped her head in assent, and padded up to the appointed patrol leader, Flarepaw flanking her. Shellfur flicked her tail for her apprentice to fall in step behind her, and Flarepaw beckoned Moonpaw to his side, his expression unreadable to her. The gray apprentice nodded and padded next to him. Paw steps behind her told Moonpaw that Waspeye and Rosefur had joined them. Shellfur flicked her tail again and started moving towards the lake. Moonpaw spared a look back before clambering onto the ice.

A light snowfall was beginning as the patrol made their way to the BranchClan-MountainClan border, which was a great ways around the lake. Moonpaw wrinkled her nose when a tiny clump fell on her nose, melting away to leave only a memory of coolness. Flarepaw flicked his ear when a speck landed on it, and glanced up at the sky.

"If we are lucky, it'll stop soon," Rosefur meowed, twitching her whiskers and narrowing her eyes. A brittle wind stirred their fur, and Moonpaw shivered. The gray apprentice scanned the dead forest, and saw something that made her freeze. The apprentice glanced at the others, but they had stopped at the border up ahead. So she cautiously crossed the scent-line, and looked down at the imprints in the snow she'd noticed. It wasn't like they were unusual, tracks, but their direction was. They were leading from the direction of the Great Hollow, and looked fairly fresh, like they'd been laid just the last night.

Moonpaw tilting her head to follow their line, and saw something even more intriguing. The barest speckle of blood, dried by now, rested in the imprints further back. The gray apprentice looked back over her shoulder, and then slowly began to follow them.

"What are you doing on BranchClan territory!" It wasn't really a question, more of an incredulous accusation. Moonpaw jerked her head up, and flinched when a limber brown she-cat jumped out of nowhere. She shuffled back, her ears flattening against her skull.

"N-nothing!" Moonpaw said, stumbling over her protest.

The brown apprentice looked at her fiercely, and then her gaze fell on the tracks below. She seemed to tense, if only for a moment, and then she was moving over them, scuffing them with her heels. Her eyes locked on Moonpaw's, and her ears were going back too. "Were you going to steal our prey?"

Moonpaw looked at her in shock, and then shook her head. "No! I don't need to hunt in the forest to get my fill!" Her lips curled up, and she bared her teeth as she began to move back.

"Moonpaw!" The gray apprentice jerked her head up to see Flarepaw staring after her in shock. The brown apprentice didn't miss a beat, taking advantage of the distraction to slam into Moonpaw. She went tumbling, and the world was suddenly a blur of brown, white and red. Claws dug into her shoulders, her belly, and Moonpaw cried out.

Paw steps echoed around her like thunder, and suddenly Flarepaw was there, ginger fur filling her gaze, crushing against her body, and then it wasn't there any more. Moonpaw flipped over, panting for breath, and looked for the brown she-cat and Flarepaw, eyes wide. There they were, tumbling in the snow like an angry mass of fur. The gray apprentice watched with wide eyes, not sure what to do for a beat.

Then more cats were appearing, from all around. There was Rosefur, who looked fearful, and angry, charging forward to protect her son, and Shellfur, who looked absolutely furious. And Waspeye, who just looked shocked, and unsure of what to do. But they weren't the only ones; there were others, their pelts clotted with unfamiliar scents.

"BranchClan, attack!" A dark tabby tom screeched, slamming into Moonpaw's mentor. The small tom and the she-cat went tumbling, and then everyone was fighting everyone, tackling each other. Claws dug into Moonpaw's back, and she was being dragged across the clearing. Moonpaw screeched in pain, and tore away from her assaulter to slam a paw across their face.

Blood flecked her vision, and Moonpaw gaped as the orange she-cat stumbled backwards, a paw over her face as blood trickled down on the snow. A caterwaul of anger pierced Moonpaw's eardrums, and she saw another unfamiliar ginger cat slam into her, carrying her off her feet. A growl tore from his throat, and he latched his teeth onto her shoulder, obviously wanting to inflict deep pain. Moonpaw hissed, and twisted into his pull, leaning against him. She battered her free paw at his ear, then securing her teeth on it. Claws dug into her chest, and she reluctantly tried to tug free, not wanting to admit defeat, but gasping at the intense pain.

Her shoulder tore where the ginger apprentice had stubbornly dug in, and respectively, her teeth had left deep groves in his ear. Moonpaw yowled, and tried to stumble away. The tom's eyes were alight with fire still, and he pressed a paw firmly on her chest, pressing her to the ground. "You mess with my littermate, you mess with me!" Then he struck across the face.

Moonpaw grimaced, and pulled away, staggering to her feet again. The tom bared his teeth, and flicked his tail. Moonpaw growled determinedly, raising her head. She couldn't be afford to be beaten so easily, not when everyone thought she was a cowardly rogue! The gray apprentice heaved some air into her chest, and lunged forward, tackling Sunpaw.

The two rolled in the snow, and Moonpaw scraped at his belly fiercely with her back-legs, snarling at him. He gave just as a heated a cry, and shoved himself away from her. The two stood, panting, in the snow, and Moonpaw wondered at the blood oozing down her shoulder and neck and sides. The orange apprentice looked heavily battered, too, his ear torn, belly scratched, and legs licked with blood. Moonpaw smirked, and breathed slowly. Somehow, a fire still burned in her, the desire to fight rampant. She lunged forward, ready to give Sunpaw another blow when someone slammed into her back.

Her body gave out beneath her, and Moonpaw twisted her neck to spy the same brown apprentice who'd started this whole spat. Rather than looking angry though, the she-cat seemed horrified, glancing every which way. She tensed on top of Moonpaw, her claws pricking through the gray cat's skin and latching onto flesh. Moonpaw hissed, and attempted to roll the brown she-cat off of her.

"You-this is all your fault!" The BranchClan cat exclaimed, slamming her weight into Moonpaw.

"Mine?" Moonpaw said incredulously. She bucked her hips, and this time the brown she-cat rolled off of her. The gray apprentice whirled around, her eyes flashing. "You were the one who attacked me in the first place!"

"You shouldn't have been on our border!" The brown apprentice retorted, crouched in front of Moonpaw. "And here everyone thinks scrappy little BranchClan would be the ones stealing prey!" Her voice sounded bitter.

"I-I wasn't going to steal prey!"

"Liar!" Reedpaw snarled, her hackles raised. She leapt, tackling Moonpaw. The grey apprentice rolled with her momentum, flipping on top of her. The older, bigger, apprentice managed to shove her away. Moonpaw struggled to her feet, only to have claws flash across her face for the second time this battle. She cried out, and stumbled away. Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw Reedpaw staring at her bleeding muzzle in horror, frozen in shock.

"You're too bee-brained to realize IslandClan would never stoop to stealing another clan's forest slop!" Moonpaw jerked her head around, and saw Flarepaw skitter into view, apparently ready for another go at the brown apprentice. The ginger tom growled and tackled Reedpaw, scoring his claws over her face and belly. Then, he had her pinned, jaws locked loosely over her throat. Moonpaw watched with wide eyes as a ginger and white tom who looked almost like an older version of Flarepaw burst into view.

"Enough!" he snarled, pushing Flarepaw away. "Warriors do not need to kill to win their battles!"

The next few moments were almost a blur for Moonpaw. She hadn't realized that there'd been a cat behind her until suddenly, two bodies collided loudly and went rolling. Moonpaw jerked around and saw Waspeye fighting a large dark brown and black tom. The tom streaked away from her, not watching where he was going and almost slamming into Reedpaw and the ginger and white tom. Waspeye let out a caterwaul, and lunged with claws extended. The tom ducked away, leaving the other ginger and white tom standing in his place. For a beat, Waspeye tried to pedal away, to move her claws from their new destination, but it was in vain.

A bone-chilling screech split the air, and then a cry of dismay, one name echoing on the brown apprentice's tongue. "Redsplash!"

Blood gushed over Waspeye's paws as they tore into the tom's neck, and she fell against him. Hastily, she pulled away, claws leaving bloody prints down his fur. Ginger and white mixed with red, and Moonpaw stared on in horror as Redsplash struggled to breathe. Blood gurgled, bubbling over the thick slash in the skin, staining the snow a rich hue of red. Waspeye stumbled away from his twitching, flailing form, her ears back and eyes wide. The tom opened his mouth trying to speak, but blood spilling from his maw. Moonpaw shivered, watching it ooze down the side of his jaw. A horrible hacking sound arose from him, like someone trying to cough up a hairball. A desperate, rattling sound emitted from him, and abruptly, he fell limp.

"Redsplash! No!" A slight, mottled she-cat rushed up, pressing her head against the unmoving tom's fur. A sorrowful wail escaped her, and Waspeye continued to move away, her eyes shining with unshed tears.

"W-Waspeye?" Moonpaw whispered, moving closer to her mentor. The wails continued to roll from the mottled she-cat's mouth, piercing the air over and over. The fighting had stopped all around, and everyone's eyes were on the bloody form of Redsplash.

"IslandClan! Retreat!" Moonpaw jerked her head to see Shellfur, whose fur was streaked with snow and blood. The patrol quickly moved away from the scene escalating around the body, not daring to look back. The mournful wails followed them all the way out of the forest.

Moonpaw was shaking by the time they'd reached the frozen lake, and had trouble crossing without slipping over and over. "You okay?' Flarepaw said, tilting his head to look at her. His eyes, which would normally have been filled with concern of some sort, seemed hollow and devastated. His voice was flat.

"I-it's all my fault," Moonpaw whimpered, trembling. "If I hadn't crossed the border, he-that tom would still be alive."

Flarepaw sighed, and twitched his whiskers. "Accidents happen, Moonpaw. I'm sure no one would blame you."

"Yeah, they would," she muttered softly as Flarepaw turned away.

Shellfur strode over to Fishclaw as soon as they were back on the island. Moonpaw ached all over, and wanted to go sleep in the apprentice's den, but she was stopped by Goldenfur. "You are not going anywhere until I treat your wounds," she said sternly. "The last thing you need in this kind of weather is an infection."

The medicine cat quickly rounded up the rest of the dawn patrol, excluding Shellfur, who'd escaped with minor cuts and was still explaining what happened to Fishclaw. Moonpaw thought it odd, and tried to ask Flarepaw. "How come Shellfur avoided getting badly scratched up while the rest of us have wounds all over?"

"I think she was being really cautious," Flarepaw said, not meeting the inquisitive she-cat's gaze.

"She was the leader of our patrol!" Moonpaw said, shock in her voice. "She's supposed to be leading us in the fight, not skirting around it!"

Something flashed in the tom's eyes, but he turned away. "She has her reasons. Besides, didn't your mentor kill a cat?"

"It was an accident!" Moonpaw exclaimed, bristling.

"See?" Flarepaw said, sitting back. Moonpaw blinked at him confusion. "What do you mean, 'see?'"

"You got mad when I tried to talk down your mentor; I feel the same way when you call her a coward."

"I never said she was a coward!" Moonpaw said, flicking her tail.

"You implied it," Flarepaw stated with a wave of his paw. Moonpaw's whiskers twitched but she said nothing back. Flarepaw smirked.

"Flarepaw! Flarepaw!" Moonpaw twisted her head to see Flowerpaw and Lightpaw appear, running towards their brother with anxious looks on their faces. Flowerpaw was a brown she-cat with white forepaws, while Lightpaw was a white she-cat with brown forepaws. They were almost perfect inverses of each other in appearance. A running joke was that their warrior names would be Flowerlight and Lightflower.

"Are you okay?" Flowerpaw asked, sniffing at the blood drying on his fur.

"Did you show those BranchClan furballs who's the best warriors around?" Lightpaw mewed excitedly, eyes sparkling. Flowerpaw rolled her eyes, and her tail tip twitched with amusement.

Flarepaw made the effort to smile, but Moonpaw just looked at the pair blankly. All she could think about was Redsplash, blood bathing his chest fur and paws. Flowerpaw looked at the pair of them in concern. "What happened?"

"Waspeye accidentally killed a tom." Moonpaw's voice broke.

"BranchClan's medicine cat," Flarepaw corrected her.

Moonpaw looked up at him in surprise. "Where did you learn that?"

"I remember seeing him sitting with all the other medicine cats at the Gathering," he mewed softly.

"Oh, that's terrible," Flowerpaw exclaimed, her eyes widening with horror.

"Do you think BranchClan will declare war on IslandClan?" Lightpaw asked, tilting her head. Moonpaw looked at her fearfully; would her curiosity result in even more deaths? She was beginning to fill sick inside.

Suddenly, Goldenfur appeared, a wad of leaves in her mouth. She eyed the apprentices sternly, and bent down to chew the leaves into a poultice. Moonpaw watched her anxiously, and shifted closer when the medicine cat beckoned her. Abruptly, she applied the sloppy mass of chewed leaves to the apprentice's shoulder and Moonpaw hissed at the way the juices stung at her flesh. Flarepaw was next, Goldenfur slapping the rest of the leaves on a deep gouge in his back.

"Don't even think about removing them," she said, fixating both of the apprentices with a deep look, and then turning away. "I'll be back with more, and some cobwebs."

"How many herbs does she have?" Moonpaw grumbled, daring to flex her shoulder.

"Probably not much," Flowerpaw said darkly. "A war would exhaust our stores."

"Please," Moonpaw said, ducking her head. "Let's not talk about war."

"Why not?" Lightpaw's eyes shone with confusion. "I mean, come on, we could probably do something heroic and earn our warrior names early!" She flicked her tail, and looked at the others eagerly.

_Warriors, _Moonpaw thought. _Will I ever become a warrior? Will IslandClan ever think I deserve to be one? _The gray she-cat's pelt prickled. Flarepaw flicked his gaze over at her, and she thought she saw something akin to concern flash across his features. Moonpaw frowned; she didn't want anyone's sympathy. She had to prove herself, didn't she? The she-cat pulled away, her ears going back.

"I'm going over to the shore, tell Goldenfur when she comes back," she said. Then, Moonpaw turned smoothly, not looking back.

"But-Moonpaw!" She ignored Flarepaw's outburst, and kept on going. The reeds enveloped her, crackling with their dry brittleness. _Why are you still here? _she thought to the reeds. _Dead things shouldn't linger._ They didn't answer, of course, but Moonpaw narrowed her eyes at the last thought. Dead things didn't linger? Then why did Redsplash sit so firmly in her mind? The gray she-cat couldn't shake him off, even as she raised her head to the burning sky and pretended to be free.

She felt something like a pulse strengthen inside her whenever she was away from the camp, away from all the talking and ambitions and jeers. It was sluggish now that was leaf-bare, but it was like that with everything now. Moonpaw curled up on the snowy shores, her mind torn with thoughts of a bloody war, and her beautiful, mysterious home land.

* * *

The scent of lavender filled Reedpaw's nostrils. She gently held the plant in her jaws, her body feeling numb all over. Before her, Redsplash was placed, flowers already bundled artistically on his throat, chest and rimming the outline of his body. To the causal observer, there would be no indication of the wounds that had ended his life.

Reedpaw bit back the urge to sob as she delicately placed her bundle on his chest, nosing it into place. The ginger and white fur felt cold to the touch, the skin beneath like ice. The brown apprentice pulled back, gazing over his form quietly. Warmth prickled into her side where Mottledleaf was standing beside her. Reedpaw dared to glance up at the medicine cat, seeing the sorrow shining in her eyes. The fur of her face was already sticky and wet with tears, and the mottled she-cat bowed her head, chest still heaving.

All around, BranchClan had gathered, those closest to Redsplash at the forefront. Mottledleaf had asked Reedpaw's assistance in decorating Redsplash's body in preparation for burial. The elders had the task of building his grave and placing him in it. Reedpaw drew in a shuddering breath, and glanced at Highstar, who looked weary. Everyone looked like they'd just gone through a great journey, for that matter. _In a way, they have, _a voice in Reedpaw's head said. _A great journey that extended over generations. _

Highstar cleared his throat, raising his head. "Today, we are gathered to commemorate the life of one of our own. Redsplash fell during a skirmish with IslandClan, and his last moments were spent trying to protect a clanmate. We wish him a safe journey to StarClan, and hope he will guide our paws in the future." The leader bowed his head, and Stickclaw moved forward. Reedpaw watched her father solemnly, wondering how he was feeling.

"Redsplash was my brother, and I always admired how he was willing to choose the path of a medicine cat. He was fierce, and not afraid to place himself in harm's way to save a clanmate's life. It should be fitting that he would leave this life protecting what he cared about most. I will miss him." Reedpaw's ears drooped, and she wondered what it would be like to see Sunpaw or Sappaw die. She didn't want to know.

"Redsplash was the greatest mentor I could ever ask for," Mottledleaf began, her voice wavering. Reedpaw could feel her trembling next to her. "He was patient when I didn't understand something, and praised me when I finally got it. He made me realize how truly amazing it can be to serve my clan as a medicine cat. I-I hope I can make him proud."

A period of silence ensued, and Reedpaw shivered in her pelt. She'd never felt so cold.

**There's another chapter. I guess I ran out of inspiration towards the end, but I wanted to show Redsplash's burial ceremony. Let me know what you think. :)**


	13. Wolf: Green Eyes In My Head

**Woah, chapter twelve. This, this is like, some kind of accomplishment right? Riiiiiight? I suppose it would be, if I had uploaded this twelfth chapters months ago. But nope, I suck, I take forever, so here we are in November, close to the point where this story will be a year old, and I haven't gotten anything done. Whoop-de-doo.**

**Anyway, I believe I neglected to do some review question answering from the past few chapters. First off, Willowsong of ThunderClan asked why I put "7 waffles" as Troutpaw's age**.

**Reply to Willowsong of ThunderClan: There's a bit of a story behind that, actually. Back a few years ago, when my sister and I first came up with the idea for this story, we immediately started coming up with characters. That, I believe, was the most fun part of the project. Coming up with names, ages, figuring out how they were all related to each other, and so on. While I was writing up the allegiances, my sister and I would discuss different things. When I was updating IslandClan, the subject happened to be Firestar Doesn't Like Waffles, a YouTube video we both ****found rather amusing. As I was writing, instead of typing up "moons", I wrote "waffles", reflecting what I was really thinking about. It cracked both of us up, and I chose to leave it there as an amusing reminder. Troutpaw will forever have his age reflected in the mystical time-length called "waffle." **

**HockeyStar31: Bad Hockey. No swearing.**

**NatureHeart10: I think a large part of the fact I don't get a lot of reviews is because I suck at updating. I appreciate how much you like the story, though! And indeed, let ze story continue! **

**From now on, I shall make an effort to reply to reviews. And to not suck at updating. But we all know how that goes . . .**

**Chapter 12: Green Eyes In My Head  
**

_Wolfpaw wrinkled her nose, distaste rising inside her __at how _dry her skin felt. The slight she-cat sloughed through the snow, damp powder sucking the moisture from her pores, and leaving her feel like a shriveled-up piece of prey. The young apprentice breathed in heavily, the exertion needed to walk through the forest sapping the strength from her limbs. Up ahead, she could see Murkypaw's dark brown and black form as her more sturdily built sister picked her way through the snow. The gray she-cat thought bitterly about the fact she seemed to stand out among her litter mates in that her body built for speed and agility, whilst theirs were suited for strength and endurance.

Thornfrost's brittle breathing tickled the side of the gray she-cat's face as he forged past her, stroking his paws through the snow determinedly. Wolfpaw slowed to watch him jealously. He was full-grown, unlike her, and was able to cross the expanse of snow with ease. He paused when he realized she was falling behind, and looked over at her pointedly. "I'm growing old over here," he called sarcastically.

"Shut up," Wolfpaw growled, picking up her pace. "Just give me a few moons off to grow, and I'll show you who's a slowpoke."

"I'm afraid that the clan needs every set of paws if we are to get through this leaf-bare." Thornfrost didn't sound like this was an unfortunate tidbit of information in the slightest. "Now come on, or it'll be nightfall before we get to the ForestClan border."

Wolfpaw grumbled darkly under her breath but began to bound after the larger gray tom. The rest of the trek passed agonizingly slowly. By the time Wolfpaw had romped and bounced all the way to the border, she was chafing heavily. Her chest burned, and it felt like red-hot claws were raking their way into her lungs. She stumbled into Thornfrost's back-legs as she struggled to keep black dots from dancing in her vision. The tom shifted, and Wolfpaw thought she saw concern in the tom's blue eyes. Wolfpaw stumbled and flopped into the snow before she could confirm any emotion in his gaze though, and groaned audibly.

"You alright?" Oh, so she really _had _seen concern! The gray and white she-cat shifted in the snow and grinned up at Thornfrost. "Never better, but it's nice to know you care." The gray tom scowled.

"Thornfrost! Wolfpaw!" Snakefur snapped from where he was standing next to a skeletal tree marking the border. Thornfrost narrowed his eyes at his former mentor, and shot a look at Wolfpaw. "Look; now you got me in trouble too!"

"You're supposed to be a warrior now, Thorn_frost_, and yet, you have to berate your apprentice for your own faults? Typical," Snakefur growled.

Thornfrost bristled. "Who are you to dictate how I teach my apprentice?" Wolfpaw glanced between the two toms uncertainly, her ears going flat against her head. She knew that Snakefur and Thornfrost had bickered with each other as mentor and apprentice. She'd also heard, back from the times back in the nursery when all she had to listen to were her siblings' and the queens' gossip, that Snakefur had a grudge against Thornfrost for influencing the behavior of his son, Beechleaf, who had been one of the oldest cats to receive his warrior name in the history of MarshClan.

"I am a _senior warrior,_" Snakefur growled, lowering his haunches. "I have every right to advise you not to twist this apprentice into a miniature version of yourself! I love Lilystar, but sometimes, she makes mistakes. Making you mentor to this . . . troubled she-cat was one of them!"

Wolfpaw spun towards the older tom at his words, her eyes narrowing to slits. "Troubled? Is that what the rest of the clan sees me as? I'm _not_ crazy, and these seizures won't stop me from becoming a warrior!"

Snakefur's gaze softened, and he shook his head briskly. "Of course not, I didn't mean it that way. It's just, I don't believe that Thornfrost is the right cat to be teaching you."

Thornfrost's pelt was shaking violently, and the silver and white tom's lips curled back threateningly. "_Why, you little—_"

"Guys!" Duskwhisker bound between the two quarreling toms. "What's the deal? We're supposed to be doing a perimeter check!" Murkypaw crouched behind her mentor, and tried to catch Wolfpaw's gaze. The gray she-cat moved around her own mentor, and looked back at her littermate uncertainly. Suddenly, Wolfpaw got the feeling that something was horribly, horribly _wrong._

The gray she-cat gasped, her eyelids fluttering in dismay as she stumbled back. She fell with a soft _flump _into the powdery snow, its damp coolness like icy claws at her back. Wolfpaw inhaled, her breath rattling, and winced painfully when the air came with even more brittle claws. The sound of the warriors talking seemed to fade, receding to a dull buzzing in her ears. She turned her head in confusion, her thought process becoming more slurred. Since when were there . . . bees in leaf-bare? Hey, were they talking?

_" . . . Duskwhisker, there's something on the border, I was trying to tell you . . ."_

_" . . . ForestClan scent all over it, they must be . . ."_

_" . . . —paw? Where is she? Help me . . . her! Where'd she go? Wolfpaw!"_

The gray she-cat turned her head slowly to the side, her vision blurring as it sluggishly tried to compensate for the movement. Slowly, luridly, she blinked, and was suddenly very aware of the beating of her heart. It was so loud, so hollow, like a steady drumming of paws on the ground . . ._ thump . . . thump . . . thump._

A head suddenly darted into view, and there were those bees again, trying to talk to her, yelling at her with high-pitched, buzzing voices. Silly bees, you can't talk to cats . . . Wolfpaw closed her eyes, and frowned slightly when she could no longer hear that heartbeat. Maybe she was wrong, maybe they really had been paw steps. Something was shaking her, or maybe she was just imagining it. It felt an awful lot like she was falling . . . no, flying! Fall-flying . . . yes . . . that was it.

Wolfpaw fall-flew from her body, at least, she assumed that was what the heavy mass of fur and muscle she had suddenly jerked free of had been. The now bodiless she-cat opened her eyes, and was a bit perturbed to find that she could no longer see herself. That probably came with the no-body thing . . . Dazed, the spirit of a cat turned her head, and was surprised to see a group of cats standing over something. She padded forward, the act feeling surreal as she could no longer see her paws making contact with the snowy ground. Finally, she was able to see what they were all looking at.

On the ground before her, a gray and white she-cat lay limply in the snow. Her eyes were closed, and as the spirit cat looked on, she noticed that the cat wasn't breathing. For whatever reason, the spirit cat knew that this cat wasn't dead, and that there was something important about her. The cat couldn't remember how this was so, and for that matter, she couldn't remember what she was doing here, or who she was. She frowned, although no one could see it, and tried to pull her memories back from wherever they had disappeared.

Suddenly, a dark brown she-cat that was smaller than the others broke away from the general ring and rushed up to the body of the gray she-cat. Her mouth was opening like she was screaming something, but the spirit cat couldn't hear what it was. Tears brimmed on the edges of the small, not yet fully grown she-cat's eyes, and she tugged desperately at the still she-cat's body. There was no response, just like the spirit cat knew there wouldn't be.

"Confused?" A low voice asked, tugging the spirit cat out of her revery. She turned, and saw a pure black tom with fierce, predatory green eyes. The spirit cat blinked in surprise, and wondered how the tom could see her. "Allow me to explain."

The spirit cat took a hesitant step backwards. She may not have known anything that she should, but something was telling her this cat could not be trusted. He was dangerous, and would hurt the gray cat lying unconscious on the ground. It was something, for whatever reason, she could not afford. "S-stay away from me!" The spirit stuttered, biting back a snarl.

The green-eyed tom chuckled, the sound deceptively pleasant, and lashed his tail fluidly. "No need to fear _me_, darling. _I'm _not the enemy."

"_Lier,_" the spirit cat hissed, her invisible ears going back. "And don't you dare call me _darling_!"

"Ah, you're a _fiery_ one," the tom purred, brushing past her. "I knew you would be a good host. Granted, your lineage made me doubt your potential at first, but when—"

"Lineage?" The she-cat exclaimed incredulously. "What in the world are you talking about?"

"Oh, _whoops_," the green-eyed tom exclaimed, looking sheepish. "Silly me, I forgot that you weren't supposed to know about that."

"Know what?" The spirit growled.

"No matter, no matter," the black tom said, waving a paw. "We're getting off track, _Wolfpaw_."

The spirit of a cat blinked, and it was like something had clicked in her mind. All at once, all her memories came flooding back into her. The gray she-cat felt a growing sense of horror as she realized who the black tom must be. She spun, ears going back against her skull. "What have you _done_? Give me back my body, you creep!"

The green-eyed black tom tilted his head, a loose smirk on his face. "Now, now, Wolfpaw, let's not get hasty. I haven't even introduced myself! I'm Storm, resident of the Cursed Valley, and you are my host in the plane of existence."

"How about you use someone else as a host!" Wolfpaw growled, crouching low to the ground.

"I'm afraid that it isn't so simple, Wolfpaw." Storm padded forward, his walk menacing. "You see, I've _claimed _you, and I have every intent of making you useful."

Wolfpaw hissed, and backed away. She hated the way this tom was looking at her. "And what would you be using me for, exactly?"

Storm's mouth curled back in a sadistic smile. "Exacting revenge on the descendants of the cats who put my kin and I in this Cursed plane, doomed to rot here forever. You see, long ago, there was a great event called the Crumbling. For the first time in millennia, two worlds were merged again, and chaos was brought down into our world, the First World. Power, which was so weak here, was suddenly back in full force. The first clans were ultimately destroyed because of it. Many of us were imbued with Power, and we ruled the world as Kings. But there was a revolt, and cats with greater Power than us imprisoned us, and restored the balance." The green-eyed tom laughed darkly. "But it seems their unwitting descendants have stumbled into the very Valley that was supposed to keep us away from them."

Wolfpaw took shaky steps away from the tom, her eyes wide with growing horror. "Y-you're crazy, you can't just destroy the clans!"

"But I did, once, and now, all of the Cursed are prepared to finish the job!" Storm growled, his cruel grin still showing. "You've met some of your fellow hosts, already, I noticed."

Wolfpaw's blue eyes widened as she thought of the three other cats she'd seen. The quiet brown one with the worried expression, the fierce orange one who had been attacked by his user before her very eyes, and the pale orange one who kept stealing glances at her. All of them, doomed to be devices for these crazy cats and their plans. Including Wolfpaw.

"Don't look so horrified, Wolfpaw," Storm purred, curling his tail about his paws as he abruptly sat back. "You and your friends are the lucky ones. As our hosts, you have incredible abilities, and as a reward for your services, we will allow you to live as privileged servants as we enslave the rest of your kin. You just have to step back, and let me use your body." He stood, and pulled himself closer to her. "I can make the tom who ridiculed you _suffer_. I know how to make those seizures go away."

Wolfpaw trembled, her fear scent growing as the dangerous tom stalked closer to her. What could she do? She remembered the horrified expression on Poolflight's face when he'd discovered the truth about her, and realized that this tom could probably kill her with a blink if his Power allowed him to. It was probably pointless to struggle. And to think of Thornfrost getting that smug expression wiped off of him sounded pretty good to the gray she-cat. No one would think her weak ever again if Storm taught her how to control the Power. The painful seizures would go away. She would be a respected warrior of MarshClan . . .

_"Wolfpaw_!" The gray she-cat jerked her head around, and gaped at what she saw. Duskwhisker, Snakefur, and Murkypaw were all still gathered her motionless body, but Thornfrost was crouched over to her. The tom and Poolflight alone knew the truth about her, and Wolfpaw felt her stomach drop when she thought about what the gray tom must be thinking. It surprised her that she could suddenly hear him. She turned away from Storm, ears pricked forward, as she tried to discern what Thornfrost was saying.

_"Wolfpaw! Please, wake up! I know you're strong enough!" _The gray she-cat's eyes widened in surprise. It was unbelievable, yet there was no denying it. There was genuine fear and horror in Thornfrost's gaze. _He cares._

"Wolfpaw," Storm growled, his voice tense. And Wolfpaw knew why. The tom was having trouble keeping her spirit away from her body for much longer. "Do we have a deal?"

The gray she-cat turned, and looked up at the black tom. She felt a prickle of fear when she looked up into his hungry green eyes, and hesitated. _"Wake up!" _But Thornfrost's voice strengthened her resolve, and she lifted her chin. "No."

Storm looked at her incredulously, and then his green eyes narrowed to slits. "_What _did you say?"

_"Wake up!"_

"I said . . . _no!" _Wolfpaw screamed the last part, and turned away from Storm, leaping to her body.

"Very well," she heard Storm growl, his voice more dangerous than ever. "I guess we gotta do this the _hard way_."

A pair of paws roughly seized Wolfpaw's head, and the gray she-cat was thrown violently to the ground. She screeched viciously, and struggled to free herself from the larger tom's clutches. Her efforts were futile though, and Wolfpaw could only snarl into the snow, unable to see her attacker from this angle. She didn't even have time to feel fear before claws and teeth gouged into the side of her face. Wolfpaw _screamed_, and thrashed wildly as hot blood pulsed down the side of her neck.

Abruptly, the weight pressing down on her body disappeared, though the pain didn't. She couldn't even see out of her left eye anymore for the blood, and faintly heard collective gasps from the group of cats that was suddenly surrounding her. Wolfpaw was back in her body, but Storm had decided to leave a little memento on the side of her face to remember him by. She let out a blood-curdling screech, and roughly shoved Thornfrost away from her.

"StarClan, where did _that _come from?"

"Murkypaw, run and fetch Poolflight immediately!"

"M-make it _stop, _please, I-I'll do _anything_!" Wolfpaw moaned, trying to shove Thornfrost away when he came towards her again. She rolled onto her damaged side, hissing at the frigidness of the snow against the deep canals of fire in her face. She squinted through her right eye, and saw a pair of wide blue eyes. Thornfrost was crouched at her side.

"What happened!" He whispered in a hushed voice. "You collapsed, and next thing I know, there's a thick wound over your left eye."

"S-storm. I-I'm his h-host. He . . . he attacked me."

"Host? What are you talking about? Explain to me, Wolfpaw!"

"Urgh," Wolfpaw shut her eye, her breathing slowing. Thornfrost's voice faded away, and when the darkness came, Wolfpaw met it gladly.

* * *

"Well, she's fine now, Thornfrost. I got some cobwebs and some poultice for preventing infection on the wound, and it looks like she'll still retain the use of her left eye. However, I cannot allow her out of camp for at least a quarter moon."

"Thanks, Poolflight. Can I see her?"

"Yeah, she's resting in her nest now."

"Alright."

Wolfpaw was staring duly at the dusty floor of the medicine den through her one good eye. She kept going over the conversation with Storm in her mind. Wolfpaw would be lying if she said she wasn't terrified. The tom had gouged her face in his anger, and the gray she-cat could sense that if she continued to resist him, Storm could deal out a lot worse. For the past day, cats had been in and out to see her. Her litter mates. Her parents. The conversation with the latter had been awkward and forced, at least on her part. Storm had said there was something about her lineage. What sort of dark secret could her parents be hiding from her? What had they done that had nearly spared Wolfpaw from this living nightmare?

The she-cat's questions and fears were going to drive her mad. Wolfpaw wondered miserably if that wouldn't be such a bad thing. At least she wouldn't be aware of how utterly bleak her life was now. What was that one phrase her mother had said once? Ah, yes. _Ignorance is bliss_.

"Wolfpaw?" The gray she-cat turned her head and saw Thornfrost crouched next to the entrance to her den. The tom looked hesitant, but his doubt seemed to clear away when he saw Wolfpaw. "You look . . . better," he said.

"I should hope so," Wolfpaw said duly. She couldn't even muster up the energy to sound sarcastic.

Thornfrost was able to sense that something was direly wrong with his apprentice, even more so than usual. "Hey, what happened?"

The gray she-cat sighed, and tilted her head up at Thornfrost. Quietly, emotionlessly, she explained to him what had happened to her. She left out the part about her lineage, deciding that she would rather not let her adversary know that her family was messed up somehow. As soon as she was recovered, he wouldn't have been able to resist teasing her about it. By the time she was done with her tale, Wolfpaw felt like having a drink, and Thornfrost looked like he'd just seen the end of the world confirmed. Which, in a way, it had been.

"What are we going to do?" He said, looking at her in horror.

"What _can _we do?" Wolfpaw grumbled, looking down at her paws. "Nothing, really. No one would be willing to move out of the valley on the words of a disabled apprentice and her delinquent mentor."

"Hey, I'm not a delinquent!"

"Everyone seems to think so," Wolfpaw said, the tiniest of smiles forming on her face. It disappeared when a question suddenly formed in her mind. "Hey, I heard there was an announcement from Lilystar yesterday when I was still unconscious."

"Yeah," Thornfrost said slowly. "While Snakefur and I were . . . talking, Duskwhisker and Murkypaw found something."

Wolfpaw nodded. "Yeah, I think I remember hearing something about it before Storm dragged me out of my body. You found something on the border?"

Thornfrost's ears perked up in surprise, and he nodded once briskly. "Yes, Murkypaw discovered the remains of prey on our side of the border . . . smelling like ForestClan."

**Dundunduuuuuuun! What is ForestClan doing on MarshClan's side of the border? Why did they eat the prey where they caught it? Does it have something to do with the fact it's leaf-bare and there's a whole new clan of extra mouths to feed? Ooooooh, I can feel the tension rising between these clans. Not to mention this Cursed bunch getting in on the action. And if you noticed, there was some crossover action going on in this chapter between this story and another one I'm writing. People who guess correctly which story that is will get digital cookies!**

**I hoped you enjoy this chapter, and I promise that _this _time, _this time_, it will take a month at the most to get this next chapter up. Cheers, and a belated Happy Thanksgiving to those of you living in America!**


	14. Lightning: War on the Wind

**Okay, I've noticed the interest in this story has dwindled, so I have decided to focus my attention. Shorter chapters, faster updates. I figure this way I don't run this series, the future-most in the Gray World project, into the ground. I'm afraid all the chapters in all my stories will probably decrease in size. Cheers, viewers!**

**Cookies to those who have sticked with me and my unreliability so far!**

**Chapter 13: War on the Wind**

_Lightningpaw was eating a mouse when the first war in the clans began. It had been looking _to be a good day so far, the sky was clear, sun was shining, and prey was in the pile for once. Lightningpaw was able to think optimistically even in the wake of his meeting with the other cats from the clans. Wolfpaw, and Reedpaw, who had both looked so frightened at the prospect that they might be cursed. Lightningpaw certainly felt unease at the thought of someone trying to control him. Now, though he was able to just soak in the sun.

Beside him, Rainpaw and Firepaw were eating prey as well. The heat coming off of them kept Lightningpaw comfortable in the cold midday air. The pale orange tabby tom scanned the camp as the silence lasted between the three of them. Next to the medicine den, the female apprentices, Graypaw, Whitepaw, and Hazelpaw were sitting and eating together. Maplestar and Acorneye were talking next to the leader's den with Thistlefang, Boulderfrost and Bushpelt. Lightningpaw's gaze lingered on his father, and he wondered where his mother was. Looking around, he spied Mallowleap with Mistbreeze, Skyleaf, and Sageflower. The latter had recently announced she was having Maplestar's kits and moved into the nursery. No doubt the older she-cats were talking about their kits, because Lightningpaw caught them looking in his direction, and then over at the female apprentices.

Firepaw jerked his head up, and narrowed his eyes when he noticed Lightningpaw's look. "Hmm, I can't wait until those kits are apprentices, can you? Thistlefang's making me clean the elders' bedding today, and relish the day when I don't have to do that anymore!"

Lightningpaw rolled his eyes. "We'll be warriors before those kits become apprentices, dummy!"

"Speaking of which," Rainpaw exclaimed, speaking up. "Remember when we were kits and we used to come up with warrior names for each other?"

"Yes, I remember that you were playing leader the day Firepaw, Hazelpaw, and I became apprentices!" Lightningpaw meowed.

"Ugh, don't remind me," Rainpaw said, frowning. "Being stuck the only tom in the nursery for awhile made me want to tear my fur out!"

"And eventually, you're going to be the only tom in the apprentice den!" Firepaw crowed.

Rainpaw scoffed. "Please, with the way things are going, I'll just perform splendidly in a battle with BranchClan, and become a warrior early!"

"Oh, yeah?" Firepaw said, raising an eyebrow.

"You'll see," Rainpaw said, tilting his chin up. "And next thing you know, I really will be Rainstar!"

"Pfff, and Maplestar will just give up and name me Firestar for my warrior ceremony, because we know who here is _actually _leader material!" Firepaw shot back.

Lightningpaw snickered, unable to help himself, and then broke out into outright peals of laughter. Rainpaw and Firepaw exchanged a look, and broke down, joining Lightningpaw in making a cacophony.

For one moment, everything felt _right _again, and the next, a group of unfamiliar cats burst into the camp. Lightningpaw whirled, breaking off mid-laugh to face the strange-smelling group. His yellow eyes widened when he recognized the tortoiseshell she-cat at the head of the group. She had been on the Great Stump's roots with the other clan leaders during the last two Gatherings Lightningpaw had been to. She was Lilystar, leader of MarshClan, and she looked furious.

"Maplestar!" The she-cat hissed, her tone as icy as her blue eyes.

Maplestar exchanged a concerned look with Acorneye, and he reluctantly approached the livid she-cat. Lightningpaw had heard stories from his mother about the thoughtful, patient leader from MarshClan. It took a whole lot to make Lilystar mad, and when she did get mad, everyone should watch out. The pale orange tabby scanned the MarshClan cats who had come with their leader, and saw a similarly angry, dark gray tom at her side. Next to him, though, was a very familiar cat.

"Wolfpa—!" Lightningpaw clamped down on his jaw before he could finish speaking the she-cat's name. The silver-gray and white she-cat had had her head pressed against the dark tom's flank, and upon hearing Lightningpaw's voice, she turned her head. There were more than a few gasps from the assembled ForestClan cats, and Lightningpaw could see, all too well, why.

A thin scar marred the left side of Wolfpaw's head. While not going very deep, it was long, crossing in a jagged, vicious line from her forehead to her chin. It crossed over her eye-lid, but miraculously left her left eye intact, and functional. Lightningpaw knew this because he could see the blue iris flick in synchrony with the right eye as Wolfpaw scanned the crowd. Realizing her movement had revealed her new wound, the gray she-cat turned her head back against the flank of the cat next to her.

"We found evidence of ForestClan stealing prey from our territory," Lilystar growled. "And while doing so, one of your cats had the audacity to attack one of our own!" The dark gray tom beside her growled in assent.

Maplestar's eyes widened in surprise, and there was a ripple of whispers and surprised cries from the other cats. Lightningpaw exchanged a look with Firepaw and Rainpaw, before looking back at Wolfpaw. _Did the creature that's been attacking her do this to her, too?_ What Lightningpaw couldn't puzzle out was how there was ForestClan scent on MarshClan territory. Was there really ForestClan cats that were crossing borders? Was that why there had been more prey lately?

"I-I don't know how this could have happened!" Maplestar exclaimed, his voice betraying his surprise.

"Obviously, you're mistaken!" Acorneye butted in, snarling. "ForestClan is above stealing from your swamp!"

Lilystar turned, narrowing her eyes at Acorneye. "I smelled it for myself, Acorneye, and several of my warriors could attest to seeing the half-eaten prey one of your numbers left on our border. Are you suggesting Wolfpaw's injury was an accident?"

Acorneye snorted. "Have you considered the possibility that Thornfrost dealt it himself? We've all heard stories about him. And what idiot would leave their food on _your _side of the border?"

The dark gray tom, who had to be Thornfrost, snarled. His ears went back, and Wolfpaw turned her head to tilt it up at Acorneye angrily. "Thornfrost wouldn't hurt me!" she hissed. Then, she blinked, as if she couldn't believe what she had just said.

"Obviously whoever left the prey wants war," Lilystar said, continuing as if Wolfpaw hadn't spoken. "And if you and Maplestar can't find the culprit and sort them out, we'll give them that war! MarshClan won't allow for one scrap of their food to be stolen or one innocent clanmate to be harmed without blood being spilled! You have until the half moon to stop the raids!"

With that, the tortoiseshell cat turned, and exited the camp with a flick of her tail. The four cats she had brought with her followed suit, and Lightningpaw lost sight of Wolfpaw in the clump of gray and brown fur. As soon as the MarshClan cats left, the ForestClan camp came to life with chatter. Wherever Lightningpaw looked, cats were arguing, shaking their heads, or comforting each other.

"Lightningpaw?" The pale orange tom turned, and saw Hazelpaw approaching. Her expression was quizzical. "Why did you try to say the MarshClan apprentice's name?"

An icy shiver went down Lightningpaw's spine. Graypaw and Whitepaw flanked his sister, and he knew Firepaw and Rainpaw were staring at him, too. He could just imagine his brother's angry gaze, and shrank under his pelt. He'd messed up bad. Firepaw would be enraged to know he'd told Graypaw about their secret, and would have his head if he didn't tell the others a convincing enough lie. Even if he just said that he met Wolfpaw at the Gathering, would they believe him? Well, he had no other option. "U-uh, I met her at the Gathering, and I was so surprised to see her scar that I said her name without thinking!"

Hazelpaw's eyes widened with realization, and then they narrowed, shining with hurt. "I bet if Rainpaw was my brother, I would've already known that sort of thing!" She ducked her head, and pushed past her brother, a low sob starting up in her throat.

Lightningpaw whirled around, staring after the brown she-cat in surprise and confusion. "Wait, Hazelpaw, what do you mean?" He ran after her, following her out of the camp entrance, and into the clearing outside. A whiff of Wolfpaw's scent crossed his path, but he didn't falter. Hazelpaw finally paused by the training clearing, and she turned to glare at Lightningpaw malevolently.

"Both you and Firepaw barely talk to me anymore!" Hazelpaw snarled accusingly.

Lightningpaw's eyes widened in shock. He was totally blindsided by her claim, even more so because she was right. Ever since Firepaw and him had confirmed there was something more than normal concerning them and two other cats from the clans, he and his brother had accidentally turned their backs on their sister. Lightningpaw couldn't remember a time between the meeting and now when he and Hazelpaw had had a legitimate conversation. "I-I'm sorry Hazelpaw, I've been caught up in everything. Ever since . . . BranchClan came, things have changed."

Hazelpaw's gaze softened, and she nodded. "Yeah, BranchClan's screwed up everything here, huh? If we still had that territory, we wouldn't be at war with MarshClan."

"But we aren't at war _now_, are we?"

"The way things are going, it seems like we're going to be," Hazelpaw said grimly. She padded up to her brother, and laid a comforting tail on his shoulder. "Don't worry though," she exclaimed, voice a low growl. "BranchClan will be gone eventually, even if we have to chase them out of their territory."

There was a pattering of paws behind them, suddenly, and Lightningpaw turned to see Graypaw pelting towards them, Whitepaw, Rainpaw, and Firepaw following close behind. The gray and white she-cat up-front slowed, looking between Hazelpaw and Lightningpaw hesitantly. "Are you both alright? We shouldn't be out of camp, you know." Lightningpaw flinched at her last words, and the underlying comment between them. _Sorry, Graypaw, but I can't change who I am, and I need every chance to learn from the others like me. _

Firepaw shot a glare at Lightningpaw. "Your queenfriend here told them everything."

Lightningpaw's eyes widened in horror. _Everything__?_

Graypaw huffed, and nodded solemnly. "I couldn't help it, Lightningpaw, I'm not used to keeping secrets from my litter mates."

"You've been keeping secrets from me?" Hazelpaw cried, stepping back away from Lightningpaw.

"N-no, please! It isn't what it looks like, I swear, I was trying to protec—"

A ginger and white tail slapped Lightningpaw on the muzzle, and the pale orange tom turned to see his brother looking at him with furious green eyes. "Shut up, Lightningpaw."

He wilted, and obliged his bigger brother. He pressed his belly to the ground, feeling miserable. Had their careful secrets fallen apart just like that? Lightningpaw cursed himself, and felt a wave of misery when he realized he already _was _cursed. _I should've never trusted Graypaw. _

"Lightningpaw and Firepaw met some cats at the Gathering, and hatched a plan to run BranchClan out of the clans," Graypaw explained, turning to Whitepaw, Rainpaw, and Hazelpaw.

_Wait, what?_

"They met together the night after the Gathering, and Lightningpaw told me about it, wanting to recruit me. I'm still thinking about it, though, because I couldn't bear living a double life and keeping secrets from the rest of you. It just wouldn't be fair!" Graypaw crouched down, burying her face in her paws.

Firepaw looked at Lightningpaw with a meaningful gaze, one that the orange tom was easily able to interpret. _Play along. _

"Um, yeah, that's why I've been so distracted, Hazelpaw," Lightningpaw said, turning to his brown-pelting littermate. "I can't rest thinking about those smug nomads filling up on _our _prey, and Firepaw can't either, so we decided to make a resistance group."

Hazelpaw looked indignant. "I would've liked to join, too, you know? Why didn't either of you tell me?"

"We were trying to keep it as secret as possible, and slowly gain new members. My informing Graypaw was an accident, really! I was going to propose I recruit you at the next meeting, I swear!" Lightningpaw said, growing more confident as the lies continued flowing.

Hazelpaw tilted her head, considered her brother's reply. "Alright, fine, I understand. But when is your next meeting? I want to come!"

"Count me in!" Rainpaw chirped, looking at the other two toms fiercely. "I want to be part of this!"

Whitepaw looked hesitant. "If we can figure out a _peaceful _solution, I won't object. Maybe I should come too!"

"So, when is it, Gray? Spill!" Rainpaw said. All three of them turned to look at Graypaw, and Lightningpaw caught her look of terror. _Uh-oh, what now?_

**Before you flip out at me, the next chapter will be from Firepaw's point of view, so you don't have to worry about this matter not being resolved. Since chapters are shorter, this'll be easier to update. Hope to be back with another chapter soon!**


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